Indonesian State Minister for Research and Technology Kusmayanto Kadiman said on Friday that the government would develop nuclear technology by 2017 for various peaceful purposes, including power generation. Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world.
"The energy policy strategy is focused on the plan to develop a nuclear power plant by 2017," Kusmayanto was quoted by the official Antara news agency as saying. The plan, which did not specify a possible location for the plant, required a more detailed assessment, the minister said after opening a maritime industry exhibition in the East Java capital of Surabaya.
When asked about the dangers of nuclear power, the official said any technology could pose dangers, which was why serious study and preparation were required. "Even coal-fired power plants have the potential to explode," he said.
Indonesia's possible turn to nuclear power isn't a surprise. The state-run electricity company PLN announced in 2004 its plan to build a nuclear power plant in Central Java.
Correspondingly, the World Nuclear Association has one planned reactor for Indonesia in its database-a 600MWe-net plant, with no operational data available (start date, contractor, etc.) Indonesian officials earlier this year were discussing six 1,000 MW nuclear plants.
And in April 2005, the spokesman of Indonesia's nuclear regulatory agency (BAPETEN) told AFP that the first power station project would be tendered in 2008 for start of construction in 2010 and production in 2016.
According to the EIA, 87% of Indonesia's 21.4 gigawatts of electrical generating capacity comes form thermal (oil, gas and coal), 10.5% from hydropower, and 2.5% from geothermal.
Indonesia is facing an electricity supply crisis, with some observers predicting that PLN may be unable to take on any new customers by 2005. Intermittent blackouts are already an issue across Java. Demand for electrical power is expected to grow by approximately 10% per year for the next ten years. The majority of Indonesia's electricity generation is currently fueled by oil, but efforts are underway to shift generation to lower-cost coal and gas-powered facilities. Geothermal energy and hydropower are also being investigated. (EIA) Indonesia is a member of OPEC, but the decline in its crude oil production (earlier post) is turning it from an exporter to an importer-making the electricity situation all the more difficult. The country has tried to shift towards using its natural gas resources for power generation, but the domestic natural gas distribution infrastructure is inadequate. The main domestic customers for natural gas are fertilizer plants and petrochemical plants, followed by power generators.
Interestingly, unlike another Muslim country much in the news which has electricity generation problems, plans to address that problem with a nuclear option, and has military prospects, Indonesia (Indonesia is cooperating with China on missle development) actually has, according again to the EIA, a large potential for renewable energy.
Solar/PV technology is an attractive option in Indonesia because the country is fragmented among numerous small islands, making a comprehensive grid difficult to construct.
Indonesia possesses significant hydroelectric potential, but has done little to exploit it. There is a government-built, 5,600-megawatts (MW) hydropower plant in Irian Jaya to support economic development. Java also has several hydropower facilities. Their combined installed capacity is 2,550 MW.
Indonesia has significant geothermal energy potential. The "Ring of Fire," the world's most active volcanic zone, stretches along the southern coast of the islands of Sumatra and Java. Exploitation of geothermal resources remains highly tentative, however. According to a February 2002 report by the US Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia had developed 787 MW of geothermal capacity. This represented only 4% of its estimated geothermal potential of 20,000 MW. About 40% of this potential is located in Java and Bali, the two most populous islands in the Indonesian archipelago.