In green push, Indonesia builds floating solar plants on its reservoir
- Accelerating the energy transition has been a priority for President Joko Widodo, with Indonesia aiming for net zero emissions by 2060
- Floating solar is becoming more popular as a clean energy solution for countries with a lack of land, or where onshore developments face opposition
Indonesia has opened a floating solar plant in West Java, part of a plan to take advantage of its reservoirs to generate more renewable electricity.
“This is a historic day because our big dream of building a renewable energy project at large scale is finally realised,” he said.
Floating solar is becoming increasingly popular as a clean energy solution for countries with a lack of available land, or in locations where onshore developments face opposition.
It is also smaller than existing floating solar plants elsewhere, including in China’s Anhui province.
Elsewhere in Indonesia, Sunseap Group has proposed a 2.2 gigawatt plant on a reservoir on Batam Island near Singapore, while Reposttren Holdings is planning a 2GW facility in West Java.
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Indonesia opens largest floating solar power plant in Southeast Asia as part of green push
Accelerating the energy transition has been a priority for the president, with Indonesia aiming for net zero emissions by 2060.
There are about 248 reservoirs in the country that could be used to develop floating solar power plants, translating to as much as 262GW of generation capacity, according to government estimates.
There are plans to expand the Cirata plant, operated by state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara and Masdar, owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, to 500 megawatts, which would be the maximum allowed under the 20 per cent rule.
