Antara, Jakarta – Indonesia's Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq reported strong progress in carbon credit transactions at the Indonesia Pavilion during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belem, Brazil.
As of Monday, November 17, 2025, one week after the pavilion opened on November 10, carbon trades recorded by Indonesia reached almost Rp7 trillion.
"As of today, the volume has reached 13.5 million tons of CO. Converted into rupiah, this represents nearly Rp7 trillion in potential transactions that have been signed by both parties," Hanif said in Belem on Monday, as quoted by Antara.
Hanif explained that the figure includes 12 million tons of CO in technology-based carbon credits and 1.5 million tons from the Forestry and Other Land Use (FOLU) sector, as well as several power-generation projects.
He said the Indonesian government continues to encourage wider cooperation on mitigation efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while strengthening the country's carbon economy.
"We are still looking to collaborate further over the next week to enhance ambition – from carbon collection to climate action," he said.
"We invite everyone to work together on mitigation efforts, which are then formalized through carbon certificates."
The Indonesian government aims to finalize transactions from 44 projects totaling 90 million tons of CO, valued at Rp16 trillion, by the end of COP30 on November 21.
To reach that target, the Indonesia Pavilion hosts daily Seller Meet Buyer sessions, a newly introduced platform that brings together sellers, prospective buyers, and investors in the carbon market.
Indonesia's approach to carbon trading was previously highlighted by the President's Special Envoy for Climate Change and Energy, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, who also leads the Indonesian delegation at COP30.
He described carbon trading as part of Indonesia's "soft diplomacy," noting the country's contributions, from tropical forests to clean energy transition and the development of a carbon economy.
"We are contributing actively to a more resilient planet," said Hashim, the brother of President Prabowo Subianto.
Civil society groups reject carbon trading
Despite the government's optimism, several civil society organizations continue to criticize Indonesia's reliance on carbon trading and decarbonization mechanisms, calling them misguided solutions that fail to address the root causes of the climate crisis.
Activists argue that carbon markets help protect extractive industries and promote the financialization of nature, sectors they say have historically driven environmental destruction and human rights violations.
Uli Arta Siagian, Forest and Plantation Campaign Manager at WALHI National, described the core principle of carbon trading as "offsetting."
"This means corporations or Annex I countries can continue emitting from extractive and industrial activities, even exceeding emission caps, as long as they purchase carbon offsets on the market," she said on November 11.
Nadia Hadad, Executive Director of Madani Berkelanjutan, urged the government to ensure Indonesia meets its own national emissions reduction targets (NDCs) before selling carbon credits abroad.
"If our national targets are not yet achieved, exporting carbon credits could actually undermine our opportunity to reduce emissions domestically," Nadia said in a written statement on November 13.
– Defara Dhanya and Irsyan Hasyim contributed to this article.