Triwik Kurniasari, Jakarta – International environmental activist group Greenpeace has called on the government to immediately develop renewable energy sources to end the need for rotating blackouts resulting from the country's energy deficit.
"It is important to save energy from fossil fuels and to use it more wisely, but we can run out of such energy in the future. It is better if the government can tap renewable energy sources, like geothermal, solar, water and wind," said Sonki Prasetya, a climate and energy campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia.
"Applying rotating blackouts is not the best solution. The government should start to plug into renewable energy now."
He said Indonesia could produce more than 60 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2050, which would make the country less dependent on imported fossil fuels and allow for cheaper electricity.
"The government actually has a plan to use renewable energy. It also has set up a regulation on it, but the implementation is still lacking," he said after the group had held a peaceful rally in front of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry in Central Jakarta.
The rally featured dozens of Greenpeace activists clad in costumes representing renewable energy sources, including wind, solar energy, water and geothermal energy.
Greenpeace's report – Energy Revolution: A Sustainable Indonesia Energy Outlook – describes a combination of renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency measures as clean, cost-effective and climate-friendly.
According to Greenpeace, Indonesia has the world's largest geothermal energy potential, with an estimated capacity of up to 27,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity, or equal to around 40 percent of the world's geothermal reserves.
The government has said geothermal power can contribute 30 percent to its 10,000 MW electricity program.
The government currently implements a rotating blackout program in some cities around the country to compensate for the country's power deficit.
According to state electricity company PT, some parts of Jakarta and Tangerang will continue to suffer blackouts until the end of the year.
Electricity demand in Jakarta can reach between 4,500 MW and 5,000 MW during peak hours, usually between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Lobo Balia of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said the government had started to use alternative energy, including geothermal energy.
"We really want to develop renewable energy, but it is hard to do it because the government is still subsidizing electricity from fossil fuels. If we erase the subsidy, people might protest the policy," said Lobo.
Sonki said it would be better if the government removed the subsidy on fossil fuels and instead allocated the funds for other sectors, including education and transportation.