Geothermal power in Indonesia

Geothermal power in Indonesia is an increasingly significant source of Renewable Energy. As a result of its volcanic geology, it is often reported that Indonesia has 40% of the world's potential geothermal resources, estimated at 28,000 megawatts (MW).

Currently Indonesia is the world's third largest geothermal electricity producer after the United States and the Philippines. Installed production capacity (2011) is almost 1,200 MW from six geothermal fields in Java, North Sumatra and North Sulawesi. In 2007, geothermal energy represented 1.9% of the country's total energy supply and 3.7% of its electric power.

At the 2010 World Geothermal Congress in Bali, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced a plan to build 44 new geothermal plants by 2014, more than tripling capacity to 4,000 MW. By 2025, Indonesia aims to produce more than 9,000 MW of geothermal power, becoming the world's leading geothermal energy producer. This would account for 5% of Indonesia's total energy needs.

A detailed report on the geothermal sector in Indonesia issued in 2015 by the Asian Development Bank and World Bank, Unlocking Indonesia's Geothermal Potential, indicated that reforms in key areas of policy were likely to be needed to stimulate sustained expansion in the sector.

The first proposal on energy from volcanoes came in 1918 during the Dutch colonial era. In 1926, five test borings were drilled in Java's Kawah Kamojang field, the third being the first that was successful. In the early 1980s, it was still discharging superheated steam from a depth of 66 metres at a temperature of 140 °C and a pressure of 3.5 to 4 bars. A prefeasibility study for electricity generation was initiated in 1972 by Geothermal Energy New Zealand. The first generator was inaugurated in 1983 by President Suharto and subsequently expanded in 1987. Current capacity is 140 MW.

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