September 5, 2022
JAKARTA – The United States and Indonesia have agreed on a framework for accelerating the latter’s renewable energy deployment this decade following a meeting between US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan on Thursday.
The agreement came as Japan and other country partners mobilized significant public and private finance for investment in Indonesia’s energy transition, the US embassy in Indonesia said in a statement issued on Friday.
Both Kerry and Luhut discussed the urgency of decarbonizing energy systems by accelerating the shift from coal to renewable electricity generation while strengthening efforts to reach universal, affordable and reliable access to energy, it added.
Kerry, who traveled to Bali on Aug. 30 to attend the Group of Twenty (G20) Climate and Environment Ministerial Meeting, expressed US commitment to mobilize finance in support of the transition.
“The US is committed to working with other country partners to mobilize investments in support of Indonesia’s energy transition,” Kerry said as quoted in the statement.
“Indonesia has great potential. The creation of jobs in the new energy sector shows that the use of fossil energy is not for the future; the transition needs to start immediately.”
Indonesia is chairing the G20’s biggest economies this year and will host the grouping’s summit in November.
“Our acceleration requires the support of world leaders, not only for funding but also for technology and human capacity. I hope that the Indonesian Presidency at the G20 Summit can help make it happen,” Luhut said in his statement.
Both Luhut and Kerry held talks with major financial institutions, including members of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), who had expressed their support for a just energy transition in Indonesia.
“They recognize the need to mobilize significant public and private finance to pursue the transition, saying that it will be a key tool for supporting Indonesia’s energy transition,” the statement said.
Luhut and Kerry have agreed to meet in the next two weeks to work toward completion of the agreement.
“Indonesia is currently encouraging the use of electric vehicles in order to improve air quality in big cities such as Jakarta and targeting the operation of new and renewable power plants by 2023,” Luhut said.
“To be able to achieve this, it takes support from global leaders to open up capital, technology and human resource capacity. Now is the decade to act, I hope Indonesia’s leadership in the G20 can make this happen for both Indonesia and the world,” Luhut added.