THE LARGEST FLOATING SOLAR FARM IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

On November 9, Indonesia inaugurated a $11 million floating solar power farm, a major milestone in the transition to green, renewable energy.

The newly inaugurated floating solar farm, named Cirata, is expected to produce enough electricity for 50.000 households. The project is built on a 200-hectare lake in West Java, about 130 km from the capital Jakarta. “We have built the largest floating solar farm in Southeast Asia and the third largest in the world,” said Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

The project is implemented by Indonesian national electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) and renewable energy company Abu Dhabi Masdar. It was completed in 3 years at a cost of about 100 million USD. Located in a green area surrounded by rice fields, the solar farm includes about 340.000 panels.

With a maximum capacity of 192 MW, the farm is producing enough electricity to supply the Cirata area. According to Widodo, the project will be scaled up to 500 MW, while PLN said the final maximum capacity could be up to 1.000 MW.

Indonesia is striving to achieve net zero emissions by 2060. The country is also trying to achieve net zero electricity sector emissions by 2060 in exchange for funding for the Just Energy Transition Partnership energy transition plan (JETP) 0 billion USD. According to the plan, Jakarta commits to cutting power sector carbon emissions to a maximum of 2050 million tons by 20 (the previous maximum was 250 million tons).

“We hope to see more renewable energy facilities built in Indonesia, such as solar, hydroelectric, geothermal and wind,” Widodo said. However, with solar and wind power, each type accounts for less than 1% of Indonesia’s electricity structure. The country still depends heavily on fossil fuels to produce electricity.

Indonesia aims to increase renewable energy to 23% of its energy mix by 2025, but Widodo admitted the country may not reach that target because of delays due to Covid-19.

Indonesia has pledged to stop building new coal-fired power plants but continues to build previously planned plants. The country is also trying to become a key player in the electric vehicle market as the world’s largest producer of nickel, an essential ingredient in lithium-ion batteries. However, some industrial parks with energy-intensive nickel smelters operate on coal.

Source: vnexpress.net