Have you ever thought about what your life would be like
without access to energy? No light in the morning — nor coffee or toast.
You couldn’t drive to work and there would be no way to connect with
others around the world. Energy is the key enabler for all of our
day-to-day activities, and for the economy.
Access to reliable and affordable energy supplies continues to improve our lives. The question is, how long will we be able to benefit from the energy supply that we need so much today?
Growing demand
Population growth has had a tremendous impact on energy demand. The world currently counts more than 7 billion people, and this number is projected to rise to more than 8 billion by 2025 — so global energy demand will continue to grow.
The challenge of meeting that growing demand is a problem that is particularly relevant for Indonesia, currently the fourth-largest country in terms of population and aspiring to continue its economic growth and development. Already Indonesia is one of the 20 biggest energy consumers in the world. If renewable energy sources are not developed immediately, depletion of energy resources becomes a real threat.
Renewable energy use in Indonesia is still very small. We mostly depend on fossil fuels. However, the government is aiming to increase the composition of renewable energy in the energy mix, to 17 percent by 2025. The composition the government is aiming to achieve would be 5 percent biofuel, 5 percent geothermal, 5 percent biomass, nuclear, water, solar and wind combined, and 2 percent from liquefied coal.
Renewable energy will also be critical to support electricity generation. Coal is still considered the most efficient and effective power plant fuel in Indonesia. Consumption is highest in the industrial, residential and commercial sectors. However, 27 percent of the Indonesian population is still off the grid.
Natural gas
In “The Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040,” ExxonMobil predicts that natural gas will be the fastest-growing major fuel through 2040. The company expects that demand for natural gas for power generation will rise by close to 80 percent by 2040. In the transportation sector, natural gas is expected to replace oil-derived fuel due to its relative affordability and low emissions; and be used mainly in commercial vehicles.
For Indonesia, this could be a major opportunity, since the country has large reserves of natural gas. The government has also been running a program to increase the number of people who use gas for cooking at home, instead of kerosene. Not only is this cheaper, it is also more environmentally friendly. In public transportation, the TransJakarta bus system is the only one that currently makes the most of this resource.
Besides renewables, investment in natural gas production would probably be a safe bet for Indonesia, considering both the expected growth in worldwide demand and the benefits of its use domestically. Surely our natural gas can be used for more than just cooking and transportation?
The print edition is available at Jakarta Globe newspaper, 3 April 2014 edition.
Digital version: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/business/meeting-indonesias-future-energy-challenges/
Access to reliable and affordable energy supplies continues to improve our lives. The question is, how long will we be able to benefit from the energy supply that we need so much today?
Growing demand
Population growth has had a tremendous impact on energy demand. The world currently counts more than 7 billion people, and this number is projected to rise to more than 8 billion by 2025 — so global energy demand will continue to grow.
The challenge of meeting that growing demand is a problem that is particularly relevant for Indonesia, currently the fourth-largest country in terms of population and aspiring to continue its economic growth and development. Already Indonesia is one of the 20 biggest energy consumers in the world. If renewable energy sources are not developed immediately, depletion of energy resources becomes a real threat.
Renewable energy use in Indonesia is still very small. We mostly depend on fossil fuels. However, the government is aiming to increase the composition of renewable energy in the energy mix, to 17 percent by 2025. The composition the government is aiming to achieve would be 5 percent biofuel, 5 percent geothermal, 5 percent biomass, nuclear, water, solar and wind combined, and 2 percent from liquefied coal.
Renewable energy will also be critical to support electricity generation. Coal is still considered the most efficient and effective power plant fuel in Indonesia. Consumption is highest in the industrial, residential and commercial sectors. However, 27 percent of the Indonesian population is still off the grid.
Natural gas
In “The Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040,” ExxonMobil predicts that natural gas will be the fastest-growing major fuel through 2040. The company expects that demand for natural gas for power generation will rise by close to 80 percent by 2040. In the transportation sector, natural gas is expected to replace oil-derived fuel due to its relative affordability and low emissions; and be used mainly in commercial vehicles.
For Indonesia, this could be a major opportunity, since the country has large reserves of natural gas. The government has also been running a program to increase the number of people who use gas for cooking at home, instead of kerosene. Not only is this cheaper, it is also more environmentally friendly. In public transportation, the TransJakarta bus system is the only one that currently makes the most of this resource.
Besides renewables, investment in natural gas production would probably be a safe bet for Indonesia, considering both the expected growth in worldwide demand and the benefits of its use domestically. Surely our natural gas can be used for more than just cooking and transportation?
The print edition is available at Jakarta Globe newspaper, 3 April 2014 edition.
Digital version: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/business/meeting-indonesias-future-energy-challenges/
