Alfitria Nefi Pratiwi, Jakarta – The Vice Chair of the Indonesian Electric Vehicle Industry Association, Prabowo Kartoleksono, criticizes the investment policy of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) for burdening foreign investors in building public electric vehicle charging stations (SPKLU) in Indonesia.
"When a Foreign Direct Investment (PMA) wants to enter Indonesia, they are required to pay Rp10 billion for each location," he said in Jakarta on Tuesday, December 23, 2025.
Prabowo referred to the policy, which requires an investment of Rp10 billion outside of land and buildings per business sector per project location, as stipulated in Government Regulation No. 5 of 2021.
Prabowo mentioned that the government revised the policy to require a Rp10 billion investment for an entire province. However, he believes that foreign investors still need more policy flexibility.
He plans to collaborate with the state electricity company, PLN, to have a meeting with the head of BKPM in January next year to consider relaxing foreign investment permits specifically for charging stations. "Because PLN will not be able to add more SPKLU," he said.
Prabowo made this statement when discussing the surge in the purchase of two models of electric cars, the Chinese-made BYD Atto 1 and Cherry Jaeco series. He mentioned that 9,600 units of BYD Atto 1 have been sold and delivered, while 5,000 units of Cherry Jaeco have been sold and will be delivered gradually from February to March next year.
According to Prabowo, the issue is that the purchase of these two electric car models does not include charging facilities or wall chargers. He stated that the price of a wall charger is around Rp6 million. This does not include the additional costs of applying for extra electrical meters, pulling cables, and installing an electrical grounding system, which can total up to Rp13 million.
Assuming the price of an electric car is Rp200 million per unit, Prabowo mentioned that the cost to install a wall charger amounts to 10 percent of the cost of purchasing a vehicle. He said that 90 percent of BYD Atto 1 buyers objected to buying a wall charger. "What is the result? They will go running to the SPKLU," he said.
Tempo has tried to contact the Minister of Investment/Head of BKPM, Rosan Roeslani, and the Deputy for Investment Control of the Ministry of Investment and Industrial Estate/BKPM, Edy Junaedi, regarding the complaints and proposals for relaxing foreign investment permits for charging stations. However, neither has responded to Tempo's messages.
According to data from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Indonesia had 123,000 electric cars and 236,000 electric motorcycles by October 2025. Meanwhile, PT PLN manages 4,272 charging stations distributed across 2,811 locations.
"The number of SPKLU only reaches a ratio of 1:26 for electric vehicles, whereas ideally it should be 1:17," said the Coordinator of Electricity Business Services, Directorate General of Electricity, Ministry of ESDM, Ferry Triansyah, in a written statement on November 11, 2025.