Indonesia to install 5,746 MW of rooftop photovoltaics (PV) by 2028

Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has set a quota of 5,746 MW of rooftop PV to be deployed between 2024 and 2028. The Jakarta-based Institute for Essential Services Reform predicts that commercial and industrial consumers will adopt more commonly use rooftop solar than commercial and industrial consumers. residential users, following the abolition of net metering earlier this year.

The distribution of rooftop PV quotas in Indonesia is based on the electric power system. Between 2024 and 2028 a quota of 5,746 MW has been set. This breaks down into 901 MW in 2024, 1,004 MW in 2025, 1,065 MW in 2026, 1,183 MW in 2027 and 1,593 MW in 2028.

The Jakarta-based Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) says the quotas have not yet been distributed according to groupings/subsystems, as stipulated by EMR Regulation No. 2/2024. The institute has asked the EMR “to actively socialize the Ministerial Regulation on rooftop solar energy and the distribution of rooftop solar quotas to consumers and its mechanism.”

Fabby Tumiwa, CEO of IESR, says the distribution of rooftop solar quotas at the subsystem/cluster level of the electric power system will provide clarity to consumers and also investment certainty for players in the rooftop solar business. .

“The distribution by subsystem provides more transparent information for consumers to read their possibilities of requesting the installation of solar photovoltaic energy on rooftops. Therefore, the Director General of Electricity must ensure that PLN immediately submits the group distribution before July when the application period begins,” explained Tumiwa.
The IESR added that the new quota does not comply with the objective set for 2021 by the National Strategic Rooftop Solar Energy Program. Calls on the government to pay attention to customer interest in the adoption of rooftop solar so that the share can be increased by 2025, in an effort to achieve the goal of 23% of the energy mix coming from renewables by 2025.

The Indonesian government abolished net metering in February, and in its absence, the IESR expects rooftop solar to become more common for commercial and industrial customers. “Industrial customers’ interest in using rooftop solar is high and aims to reduce energy costs and ensure sustainable manufacturing processes, so that the elimination of net metering does not have too much impact on their interest,” said Marlistya Citraningrum, IESR Sustainable. Responsible for the Energy Access Program.

Citraningrum added that an explanation is required if oversubscription occurs on a group of systems. “The interest of residential customers is likely to decrease due to the change in economic level, but with the spread of information and the desire to save on electricity costs, usage demand is also likely to grow,” she said.

Last month, IESR called for power wheeling to be implemented in Indonesia, saying it would create a renewable energy market and have a positive impact on industrial investment.

Patrick Jowett, pv-magazine.com