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

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President Joko Widodo (middle) attends the inauguration ceremony of the Cirata Floating Photovoltaic Power Plant. Accelerating the energy transition has been a priority for the president, with Indonesia aiming for net zero emissions by 2060. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 7:00am, 11 Nov 2023Updated: 7:32am, 11 Nov 2023

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.

President Joko Widodo was at a ceremony to mark the opening of the Cirata plant – about 100 kilometres (60 miles) west of the capital Jakarta – on Thursday.

Indonesia issued a rule in July allowing as much as 20 per cent of reservoir areas to be used for renewable energy generation.

“This is a historic day because our big dream of building a renewable energy project at large scale is finally realised,” he said.

The booster station and floating array of the Cirata floating solar plant. Photo: Xinhua

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.

Japan, South Korea and China are among major adopters, according to research organisation BloombergNEF.