Energy ministry to have new directorate general of renewable energy

The Indonesian ministry of energy and mineral resources will add to its organizational structure a new directorate general tasked with handling renewable energy, indicating the government?s seriousness in developing the green energy sources.

The plan came following the Copenhagen Summit, where President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, widely known by his initials ?SBY?, restated Indonesia?s commitment to reduce carbon emission by up to 26 percent in 2020.

?I think we need this new directorate general to be specialized in developing our renewable energy. We?ve proposed this to the state secretary. Hopefully, the President will issue a presidential decree on this in the near future,? Waryono Karno, the secretary general of the ministry of energy and mineral resources, told the press in Jakarta on Thursday.

He refused to name the new director general in charge of the new directorate, saying that ?It?s still in a process. Let?s wait and see.?

He noted that when the new directorate general established, it was expected to handle the development of geothermal and biofuel.

SBY launched the national program to develop biofuel five years ago but the industry has thus far made minimal progress.

Meanwhile, Indonesia is said to have the potential to generate about 27,000 Megawatt electricity from its geothermal reserve, but only 1,155 MW so far had been tapped through 16 geothermal power plants on Java, Sumatra , and Sulawesi islands. (Benget)