JAKARTA – President Prabowo Subianto emphasized the acceleration of renewable energy development in Papua as part of the government’s major efforts to achieve energy and food self-sufficiency.
Papua is considered to have great potential for developing bioenergy based on local commodities, such as palm oil, sugar cane, and cassava.
According to the President, the utilization of these commodities can produce fuel oil and ethanol, while simultaneously encouraging regional independence in the medium term.
“We hope that oil palms will also be planted in Papua so that they can produce fuel from palm oil. Sugar cane will also produce ethanol, and cassava will also produce ethanol. So, we plan to have all regions stand on their own two feet within five years,” Prabowo said.
The President assessed that integrating bioenergy development with renewable energy such as solar and hydropower would have a significant impact on state budget efficiency.
“If we could grow oil palms, cassava, and sugar cane using solar and hydropower, imagine how many trillions of rupiah we could save each year,” he said.
Prabowo also highlighted the persistently high burden of energy imports. Annual fuel imports reach approximately IDR 520 trillion. Eliminating this dependency would significantly expand the national fiscal space.
Bahlil Lahadalia, the Daily Chair of the National Energy Council (DEN), and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, stated that the President has ordered the development of a comprehensive strategy to reduce dependence on fuel imports.
“The President has four focuses: energy sovereignty, energy security, strengthening energy independence, and self-sufficiency,” Bahlil said.
He added that national energy security, which is currently around 21 days, is targeted to increase to three months through the development of storage infrastructure.
Support for this policy also came from a native son of Papua, Yance Mote.
He assessed that the direction of government policy was in line with the needs of the Papuan people to be directly involved in natural resource management.
“The welfare of the Papuan people is a top priority for the Central Government,” he said.
Yance emphasized the importance of empowering local communities to manage customary lands sustainably.
“For us, it’s time for the Papuan people to move up a level. From being objects to becoming subjects,” he said.
He added that the development of local commodities integrated with national downstream processing is believed to be able to strengthen energy security while simultaneously encouraging sustainable regional economic growth.
