Russia Offers to Develop Nuclear Power Plant in Indonesia

TheIndonesia.co - Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif stated that the government is considering Russia's offer to develop a nuclear power plant in Indonesia. Not only Russia, but other countries have also offered to build a nuclear power plant under a bilateral cooperation scheme, he said.

Tasrif stated this during an interview with ANTARA on the sidelines of a joint working meeting between the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry and the Industry Ministry in Bogor, W Java, on Monday, June 4, 2022.

"We will look at which (offer) is competitive and reliable. The need for nuclear energy will start only in 2040 based on the road map for the energy we have conceived,” he said.

According to Tasrif, Indonesia is endowed with raw materials for the development of nuclear energy to meet the demand for clean electrical power in the future. Tasrif stated that many countries will apply and utilize nuclear technology in the next 20 years, so its safety needs to be ensured.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had drawn attention to a Russian company's interest in developing a nuclear power plant in Indonesia after President Joko Widodo’s visit to Moscow in late June. Putin said a Russian company that has the necessary experience, competency, and technology is ready to get involved in the development of the nuclear energy industry in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, on Monday, an energy economic observer from Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Fahmy Radhi, encourages Indonesia to accept the offer from Russia to develop nuclear energy. "Based on the experience, competency, and reliability of Rosatom's technology, Putin's offer to develop a nuclear power plant in Indonesia is worth accepting," he said.

A nuclear power plant is a thermal power plant equipped with a nuclear reactor that uses uranium to generate electricity. Nuclear energy is clean energy that can help meet the new and renewable energy mix for power plants in Indonesia, he said.

In fact, nuclear power plants can help overcome the shortcomings of solar and wind power plants, which cannot supply electrical power at full capacity all the time because they depend on the sun’s rays and wind, respectively, he highlighted.

Before cooperating with Russia on the development of nuclear power plants, the government, the House of Representatives (DPR), and the National Energy Council (DEN) must revise the national energy policy, which has so far treated nuclear energy as a last alternative, he added.