{"id":286164,"date":"2023-11-02T12:08:13","date_gmt":"2023-11-02T11:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=286164"},"modified":"2023-11-02T12:08:16","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T11:08:16","slug":"indonesia-shelves-decarbonization-for-prosperity-and-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=286164","title":{"rendered":"Indonesia Shelves Decarbonization for Prosperity and Security"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indonesia\u2019s sizable export income has been made possible by the global need for coal and nickel.\u00a0Jakarta plans to introduce\u00a0a carbon tax in\u00a0April\u00a0on coal-fired power plants and\u00a0other targets. The emissions trading market is expected to be put into place shortly.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

An electric vehicle (EV) boom is underway. It is driving huge growth in demand for battery minerals, especially nickel. EV market forces and regulators will require that mineral supply chains have a low carbon footprint. Much of the nickel that will feed the EV boom in the next decade will come from Indonesia. But Indonesia has a carbon problem that will need substantial international funding and technology to resolve.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Watts Up With That?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guest essay by Vijay Jayaraj<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past few decades, Indonesia, an archipelagic nation made up of over 17,000 islands, has seen amazing economic progress. The strategic utilization of fossil fuels is a key factor at the center of this growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indonesia is a significant user of coal as well as the world\u2019s third-largest producer of the mineral.  But just like other countries, it faces immense pressure from entities like the United Nations and anti-fossil fuel leaders in the West to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of industrial activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rich countries led by the U.S. and Japan offered Indonesia a $20 billion package<\/a> in 2022 to persuade the coal-dependent nation to transition off fossil fuels. In November 2022, the country\u2019s leadership signed<\/a> the agreement known as the Just Energy Transition Partnership, which was expected to formally ratify the nation\u2019s move away from coal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, almost a year later, the island nation appears to be going the opposite direction as it embraces fossil fuels for energy security. In 2022, Indonesia used more coal than ever and is looking to produce even more this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indonesia\u2019s coal consumption will rise steadily until 2029 due to the construction of new coal-fired power plants. As per Global Energy Monitor<\/a>, nearly 19 gigawatts of coal power were under construction at the end of 2022. If the status quo prevails, the country is expected to retain its ranking as the sixth largest emitter of CO2<\/a> in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coal, Nickel, and Asian Energy Security<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A plentiful supply of coal, oil and natural gas has had a significant impact on Indonesia\u2019s economic development and is now crucial for boosting the economy and lowering poverty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason, the country continues to increase the installed capacity of fossil fuel-powered technologies. Since 2015, the highest share of increase in electrical generation capacity<\/a> has been in fossil fuels, not renewables. In 2022, almost 90 percent<\/a> of the country\u2019s primary energy came from coal, oil and gas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among these, oil and coal provide the majority of the county\u2019s primary energy, with the latter\u2019s contribution being 45 percent. Not only is Indonesia\u2019s coal output essential to the country\u2019s energy security but it is also for Asia\u2019s. The nation is on course to produce in 2023 695 million tons, of which 518 million tons<\/a> will be exported. Some of the largest buyers of Indonesian coal are China, India, Japan, the Philippines and South Korea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China and India, two of the world\u2019s biggest economies that mostly rely on coal-fired power plants, benefit the most from Indonesia\u2019s exports of coal. With its share increasing to two-thirds in 2022, Indonesia solidified its position as India\u2019s top foreign supplier<\/a> of thermal coal. For the foreseeable future, Indonesia intends to keep mining its reserves, as neither China nor India are exhibiting signs of reducing their reliance on coal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also vital to remember that Indonesia is the number one producer of nickel<\/a>, an essential part of batteries that power EVs and energy storage systems globally. In 2022, half of the world\u2019s nickel production came from Indonesia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The production of nickel in Indonesia is largely dependent on smelters that use coal energy, which makes the nation even more dependent on the fuel. The adoption of EVs and batteries in Europe and North America suggest that the demand for coal-enabled nickel production will continue in Indonesia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indonesia\u2019s sizable export income has been made possible by the global need for coal and nickel. This wealth has been essential for funding development initiatives, maintaining Indonesia\u2019s trade balance and adding to its foreign exchange reserves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no way Indonesia will choose to kill a booming economy for a $20 billion handout to fund a so-called energy transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This commentary was first published at Real Clear Energy<\/em>, October 30, 2023, and can be accessed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vijay Jayaraj<\/a>\u00a0is a Research Associate at the\u00a0<\/em>CO2 Coalition<\/em><\/a>, Arlington, Virginia. He holds a master\u2019s degree in environmental sciences from the University of East Anglia, UK.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Indonesia\u2019s sizable export income has been made possible by the global need for coal and nickel.\u00a0Jakarta plans to introduce\u00a0a carbon tax in\u00a0April\u00a0on coal-fired power plants and\u00a0other targets. The emissions trading market is expected to be put into place shortly. An electric vehicle (EV) boom is underway. It is driving huge growth in demand for battery […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":286167,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Indonesia\u2019s sizable export income has been made possible by the global need for coal and nickel.\u00a0Jakarta plans to introduce\u00a0a carbon tax in\u00a0April\u00a0on coal-fired power plants and\u00a0other targets. The emissions trading market is expected to be put into place s","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691820972,691818076,691824189,691824188,691818228,691819027,691818264],"class_list":{"0":"post-286164","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-battery-electric-vehicle-bevs","9":"tag-co2","10":"tag-energy-transition-3","11":"tag-export","12":"tag-fossil-fuels","13":"tag-indonesia","14":"tag-nickel","16":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/0decarbonizationjpeg.jpg?fit=1920%2C1080&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1cry","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":290694,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=290694","url_meta":{"origin":286164,"position":0},"title":"Net Zero\u2019s dirty secret: Britain\u2019s green transition is powered by Chinese\u00a0coal","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"12\/10\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Tansport crates with Chinese flag on the conveyor belt. 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