Western nations not ready to finance early coal power retirement -Indonesia official

NUSA DUA, Indonesia :Western countries are not ready to finance the early retirement of coal-fired power plants, an Indonesian official said on Monday, based on discussions held with countries in the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP).

Last November, Indonesia became the second country to join the JETP, which will deliver $20 billion in funds from a coalition of developed countries to help reduce the dependence on fossil fuels in emerging market nations, but its announcement of investment plans has been delayed.

“During the discussion it is very clear that they are not eager to provide financing for early retirement,” Septian Hario Seto, Indonesia’s deputy of investment and mining coordination at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime and Investment Affairs, told Reuters on the sidelines of industry conference Coaltrans.

“Our demands are very clear – early retirement of coal fired power plants and building a smart grid,” he added.

However, “they are more interested in renewable commercial projects,” Septian said.

For Indonesia, the challenge is excess electricity supply, he added.

The “priority should be coal retirement or increasing demand since we have an excess (of electricity),” he said.

“If we continue adding renewable, it will impact our budget.”

The phase out of coal use will still require concessionary funds from developed countries, Septian said.