The Indonesian government has encouraged the use of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology in the development of oil and rare earth gas fields in order to mitigate the impact of climate change caused by mining activities.
According to an official from the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, the use of clean energy, such as CCUS, has become the primary consideration in ensuring availability, affordability, sustainability, and competitiveness to achieve energy sovereignty as well as climate resilience and a low-carbon future.
The minister affirmed that energy transition, as the foundation of climate change mitigation, is crucial for Indonesia in reducing carbon emissions and achieving the carbon-neutral target by 2060. According to the official, the CCUS technology used for energy development and enhanced oil recovery (EOR) has become one of the key discussions in reducing carbon dioxide emissions. “We observe that green energy in the future will certainly be renewable energy. To this end, we need an energy transition strategy,” he noted.
CCT or CCS and Net Sink clean technology are really needed for a shift toward green energy. Gas is fossil energy that could become eco-friendly energy using CCUS.
– Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry
In collaboration with the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) and two other technology companies, the CCUS application study on oil and rare earth gas fields in Indonesia has been ongoing since 2011 in the Gundih field, Central Java.
Furthermore, an EOR carbon dioxide project is being carried out on the Sukowati field by a subsidiary of a state-owned oil company, a Japan-owned oil, and petroleum company, along with the Lemigas Research and Development Centre of Oil and Gas Technology, a department under the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
Other projects include the carbon dioxide Source-Sink Match and the Tangguh CCUS/CO2-EGR project. The potential carbon dioxide emissions contained within the CCUS from Gundih, Sukowati, and Tangguh are estimated to be around 48 parts per million.
Indonesia, the world’s eighth-largest carbon emitter, recently shifted its goal of net-zero emissions from 2070 to 2060 or sooner, ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow and joined the United States-led Global Methane Pledge. It also intends to halt the construction of new coal-fired power plants and phase out coal for electricity generation by 2056 as part of a new, greener long-term economic vision.
However, it is believed that if Indonesia can implement CCS more widely and cheaply, the technology could be applied to coal power plants, extending their use. “This appears to be a win-win move to accommodate all sides because they do not dare to completely shut down coal,” said the World Resources Institute Indonesia. It had also claimed that, while CCS technology is technically feasible, there is a risk of leakage when attempting to capture emissions from coal-burning and mining.
OpenGov Asia reported that Indonesia has recently updated its nationally determined contribution (NDC). The Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of Indonesia outlines the country’s transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient future.
Apart from confirming its first NDC from 2016, which called for a 29-41% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, it has included ocean and marine issues in its emissions strategy. The country’s net-zero target date has also been shifted from 2070 to 2060 by the authorities. More can and must be done, however, as humanity is urged to race to net zero.
Buildings emit carbon dioxide not only when they are fully operational. Building materials such as steel, cement, and glass, as well as building construction and demolition, account for 10% of global carbon emissions.
The finance minister asserted that while Indonesia is aware of its vulnerability to climate change as an archipelago, policies must take into account economic developments, including the future of coal and the jobs it provides.
