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PLN Gradually Recovers Electricity Supply (0)
State-owned electricity firm PT PLN has recovered electric power to Balaraja Extra High Voltage substation in Banten Province, and furthermore it will be channeled to Suralaya steam-fueled power plant (PLTU) to gradually recover its operation to reach its capacity of 2800 MW of electricity.
In addition, power supply from Gandul Extra High Voltage substations in Depok, West Java Province, will be channeled to Muara Karang gas and steam power plant (PLTGU) to supply electricity to the Indonesian capital city, Jakarta.
Acting President Director of PLN Sripeni Inten Cahyani said here on Sunday that the power supply to Jakarta was expected to recover within three hours.
"We apologize for the inconvenience today, and currently all efforts have been made to recover the Java-Bali power system, especially in the area of West Java, Banten, and Jakarta," Cahyani said.
The company has focused on power supply to PLTGU Muara Karang and PLTGU Priok to recover the system in the capital city.
Previously, PLN has recovered the operation of hydro-generated power plant (PLTA) Saguling and PLTA Cirata which are functioned as power stabilizer, and, at the same time, supply the electricity to PLTU Suralaya through Cibinong, Depok, Gandul, Lengkok, Balaraja and Suralaya extra high voltage substations.
PLTU Suralaya is expected to return to its normal operation within six hours to normalize power system in West Java and Banten.
Blackout that affected thousands of homes and public facilities in West Java, Jakarta, and Banten was caused by several troubles in the extra high voltage 500 kV transmission of Ungaran - Pemalang.
"PLN has taken its best efforts and will have evaluation to prevent recurrence of today's incident," Cahyani said.
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October
Indonesia needs trillions to cut PLTU use: Ministry
Written by Nur Yasmin
Indonesia needs up to Rp3,500 trillion to reduce the use of coal-fired power plant (PLTU) to achieve the carbon emission reduction target, Deputy Minister of Finance Suahasil Nazara has said. At a webinar held here Thursday, he has admitted that the value is quite significant.
Thus, the government had tried to meet the funds needed by using the state revenue from tax payments. It was still not enough.
In addition, Indonesia has been committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 29 percent with their own efforts and up to 41 percent with assistance from the international community by 2030.
Hence, the country must reduce the use of PLTUs, considering that they produce a considerable amount of carbon -- around 35 percent of which is generated from the community’s energy consumption.
"Most of our electricity is generated by using coal and diesel. Thus, we still depend on fossil fuels. It makes the sector contribute to high emissions, so we are striving to reduce it," the deputy general explained.
However, decreasing the utilization of PLTUs is difficult as they have been contracted by the state-owned electricity provider PT. PLN (Persero).
"If the power plant is closed while the contract is still effective, we have to provide a lot of compensation,” Nazara added.
Hence, he hopes that Indonesia can receive international support to achieve the reduction target.
The support is expected at Conference of Parties (COP) 26 meeting on climate change in Glasgow, Scotland, from October 31 to November 12, 2021.
According to the deputy minister, the meeting can be a milestone for the international community to realize their commitment to assisting the developing countries in achieving various targets related to the issue of climate change. (Antaranews)
October
Exploring potential markets to accelerate economic recovery
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Indonesian Government recently organized two business forums targeting Central and Eastern Europeas well as Latin America and the Caribbean.
These two regions are considered potential markets that Indonesia is keen to explore further, especially to restore its economy, which has been pummeled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first business forum with Central and Eastern Europe (INACEE Business Forum) on October 7, 2021 and the third business forum for Latin America and the Caribbean (INA-LAC Business Forum) on October 14-15 were very important for revitalizing trade and investment relations and boost economic cooperation, officials said.
“As we try to recover stronger from the pandemic, one thing is for sure, a business-as-usual approach will not cut it. We need to explore innovative ways to accelerate our recovery and dig deeper into untapped potential,” Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said.
In order to do so, Indonesia is encouraging its partners in Europe and Latin America to restore connectivity and global movement of goods, services, and people by exploring a travel corridor arrangement for essential business travelers followed by similar arrangements for tourists, she informed.
Critical to such endeavors of mutual recognition are vaccine certification and travel guidelines for the movement of people between Indonesia and countries in Central and Eastern Europe as well as in Latin America and the Caribbean, she said.
Indonesia has also invited countries from Europe and Latin America to explore the untapped potential in trade relations by looking in other prospective areas and utilizing available tools to enhance economic relations such as MoUs (memorandums of understanding) and trade agreements, she said.
Indonesia has also continued to promote digital economy that can help businesses to connect with each other, converting prospects into leads and leads into business deals, she added.
Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi said he believes there is huge potential for trade between Indonesia and Central and Eastern Europe that can drive the nation's exports.
"Nations in Central and Eastern Europe are some of Indonesia's potential trading partners. As a matter of fact, some of them were recorded to be the nation's top 30 primary export destinations," the minister noted in a video presented at the opening of the INACEE Business Forum.
Lutfi deemed that the business forum activity offered an important momentum to intensify economic relations with countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
"We asserted Indonesia's commitment to strengthening trade cooperation with those regions once more. I encourage entrepreneurs in Central and Eastern Europe to further explore business in Indonesia," he expounded.
During the January-August 2021 period, Indonesia's export value to Central Europe grew about 23.6 percent (YoY) to reach US$2.52 billion, he said.
Meanwhile, its exports to Eastern Europe swelled by 58.07 percent (YoY). Its primary export products to the region were rubber, steel, palm oil and its fractions, copper ore, tin, footwear, wood, and charcoal, he added.
The INACEE Business Forum is a series of trade, investment, and tourism promotional activities that are aligned with the INA- LAC Business Forum 2021 as well as Trade Expo Indonesia 2021, he said.
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s trade with Latin America and the Caribbean has moved in a positive direction, with total trade value reaching US$8.25 billion (Rp116.8 trillion) in 2020, he informed.
The total trade value reflects an increase of 6.45 percent compared to trade of US$7.75 billion (Rp110.4 trillion) recorded in 2019, he noted.
However, Indonesia’s market share in the total imports of Latin America and the Caribbean is just 0.5 percent, he pointed out. That means, in Southeast Asia region, it is below Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore in trade with the two regions, he added.
“This is a big untapped potential of trade between our countries,” Lutfi noted.
Referring to the complementary economic scope of Indonesia and the Latin American region, Lutfi said there are many sectors that can be further explored.
Indonesia needs more agricultural products, resource-based products, manufacturing good products and services from Latin America and the Caribbean countries, he informed.
Meanwhile, Indonesia can provide a variety of processed-food products, intermediate goods, and manufactured goods as well, he said.
“We believe that in order to strengthen our trade cooperation, not only we need to sell more, but we also need to buy more,” he added.
Considering that the coronavirus pandemic is still limiting physical interaction, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry organized the two business forums using digital platforms to facilitate virtual trade, investment, and tourism interactions, he noted.
The website ina-access.com features 4,355 export-ready products from 800 companies, half of which are from MSMEs, as well as 133 investment projects from 11 sectors that have been curated by the government, he informed.
By accessing the platform, it is hoped that businesses can find products of interest and can directly interact and cooperate with their partners amid the limitations placed by the pandemic, he said.
"We are taking advantage of this pandemic situation as a momentum to conduct business virtually and we are also taking advantage of the rebound in economic growth," the ministry’s director general of America and Europe, I Gede Ngurah Swajaya, noted.
Indonesia's initiative to strengthen economic cooperation with countries in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as in Latin America and the Caribbean, has yielded positive results, he said.
In the first INACEE Business Forum, business deals worth US$2.9 million were recorded, while the INA-LAC Business Forum resulted in business deals of around US$87.96 million, he informed.
The value of the business deals reached in this year's INA-LAC Business Forum increased from the previous year's US$70 million, he said.
“This is a good start to take advantage of the momentum of economic recovery. Because even though we are in the midst of a pandemic, last August we recorded the highest export record (to Latin America and the Caribbean) in the last 20 years," Ngurah pointed out.
Until the third quarter of 2021, the Trade Ministry recorded positive growth in Indonesia's exports to Latin American and Caribbean countries, with the value of exports reaching US$1.7 billion, an increase of 54.8 percent compared to the same period last year, he said.
Meanwhile, Indonesia's imports from the region also showed a positive growth of 4.17 percent year on year, he added.
Efforts to improve economic relations with Latin America have been supported by the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between Indonesia and Chile (IC-CEPA), which has been in effect since 2019, he said.
Currently, Indonesia is also in the process of pre-negotiating the establishment of a CEPA with the Mercosur—a trading block that includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela, he informed.
The optimization of digital technology can also help Indonesia to overcome geographical constraints that have become a classic challenge in trade with the Latin American region, he added. (Antaranews)
October
Jokowi hopes health will be focus of ASEAN-India cooperation
Written by Nur Yasmin
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has stressed the significance of maintaining cooperation between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India in the health sector, particularly to address the COVID-19 pandemic.
"(This is aimed) not only to address the COVID-19 pandemic but also to prepare ourselves for pandemics in the future,” he said while addressing the 18th ASEAN-India Summit, which he joined virtually from the Bogor Presidential Palace on Thursday.
According to him, India has a large capacity in the health sector, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry.
India is also the largest vaccine producer in the world and the third-largest pharmaceutical producer in the world, he noted. This offers large capital to strengthen cooperation between ASEAN and India in the pharmaceutical industry, he said.
Among the areas of cooperation that both sides can develop are increasing medicine and vaccine production, conducting joint research for the development of vaccines with up-to-date technology, developing networks, and being a part of the regional distribution center for the pharmaceutical industry, he said.
“At a global level, the support of TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Waiver at WTO must be done. This is important to facilitate access to up-to-date technology in the production of medicines and vaccines," he added.
Jokowi further underscored the importance of cooperation in human resources development in the health sector the more so because India has institutes of higher learning with a large number of medical schools.
“With experienced and excellent human resources, India can support ASEAN member countries’ effort to improve their human resources’ capacity,” he said. (Antaranews)
October
Govt prepares flood-resilient city program to face climate change
Written by Nur Yasmin
Public Works and Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono has said the government has prepared a flood-resilient city program focused on increasing river capacity and building the water resource infrastructure in response to climate change.
"We are attempting to increase the river capacity by dredging, broadening, or constructing embankments," he stated at the main event of the online commemoration of 2021 World Habitat Day and World City Day here on Wednesday.
For instance, the ministry has built the Nanjung Tunnel to expedite the water flow capacity of Citarum River, which often floods several areas in Baleendah sub-district, Bandung city, West Java, he informed.
In addition, it has constructed a canal from Cisangkuy River to Citarum River to reduce the volume of water flowing through the Cisangkuy River, he said.
Furthermore, the minister said the climate crisis has influenced the work of the ministry since it has changed the hydrometeorological cycle.
As the cycle change will bring heavier rainfall in a shorter time, various incidents of floods, flash floods, and landslides are expected to occur more frequently, he explained.
Thus, the ministry has to build infrastructure to prevent disasters from causing more damage to the community, he added.
"The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) has warned us of the upcoming La Nina. Hence, they have also invited us to a coordination meeting to deal with the disaster as it is our duty to prepare for it," Hadimuljono said.
Hence, he said he has asked all staff at the ministry to embody the theme of 2021 World City Day of ‘Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience’ so that Indonesia is ready for and able to continue adapting to the crisis.
"I expect we can become an example for other ministries in adapting to climate change," he added. (antaranews)
October
ASEAN+3: Widodo underlines three focuses to toughen health resilience
Written by Nur Yasmin
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has highlighted three focuses that can be used by ASEAN Plus Three (APT) countries to strengthen health resilience.
These three focuses are long-term investments so that the region is better prepared for future pandemics, he said while delivering a speech at the 24th ASEAN Plus Three summit, which he joined virtually from Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, on Wednesday.
The first focus is increasing the capacity of national health services, as they are absolutely the frontline in facing any pandemic, he pointed out.
The President also affirmed that national health can be the foundation for regional health resilience.
"The national health insurance system must also continue to be strengthened, especially for marginalized groups. The national pandemic mitigation strategies need to be improved, such as collaborating with the WHO Country and Regional Offices," he expounded.
Secondly, medical needs must be met by building reserves of medical supplies in the region, he said.
The ASEAN Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies can be developed into an inventory buffer, he suggested.
The production capacity must be bolstered through investment support, technology transfer, and access to raw materials, he added.
"In a pandemic, regional health funding is necessary. The ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund can be advanced into an ASEAN Emergency Health Fund," Widodo said.
The next focus is strong coordination to align policies for tackling pandemics, he added. According to Widodo, coordinated handling will have a greater impact on pandemic control.
"We also need to develop mechanisms for quick and equitable distribution of medical needs in the region in times of emergency. For this reason, the ASEAN Emergency Operation Centre Network for Public Health must be utilized to the fullest," he affirmed.
ASEAN Plus Three (APT) is a cooperation between ASEAN countries and three East Asian countries (China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea) that has been in place since 1997.
Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and Deputy Foreign Minister Mahendra Siregar also attended the summit. (Antaranews)
October
Indonesian, Malaysian armies strengthen cooperation in border security
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Indonesian Military's Battalion 643/Wanara Sakti and the Malaysian Army's (TDM) Battalion 500 and Battalion 602 have strengthened cooperation in securing the countries' borders in Jagoi Babang Sub-district, Bengkayang District, West Kalimantan.
"The TDM’s working visit also aims to review the condition of our joint post which accommodates TDM’s barrack," Commander of the Border Security Task Force of the Indonesian battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Hendro Wicaksono, said in Jagaoi Babang on Wednesday.
The visit was conducted by two Malaysia Military Liaison Officers (MMLOs) -- Lieutenant Colonel Haizal from TDM Battalion 500 and Major Arif from TDM Battalion 602, he informed.
"The Jagoi Babang Joint Post is a new security post. The establishment of the TDM’s barrack and other supporting facilities at the post is a strategic step in increasing the cooperation between the Indonesian military (TNI) and TDM in line with the construction of the Jagoi Babang border checkpoint," he said.
The result of the review will be discussed by the 38th Malaysia-Indonesia Land Operation Design Team (TPOD) in Malaysia as it is planned that the Malaysian army will replenish their personnel at each joint post, he added.
According to the Deputy Commander of the Border Security Task Force of the Indonesian battalion, Major Didik Lipur, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the TDM had assigned its personnel to the Aruk Joint Post and Entikong Joint Post.
“While, TNI had placed its officers at Biawak Joint Post in Malaysia. However, since the virus outbreak, each country had withdrawn their personnel," he added.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Haizal of the MMLO said the visit aimed to review the readiness of barracks at the Jagoi Babang Joint Post, which would be re-occupied by TDM personnel.
“Apart from the joint post, we will also review the preparedness of the Temajuk Joint Post and the Nangau Badau Joint Post,” he informed. (Antaranews)
October
Jokowi calls for mutually respectful partnership at ASEAN-China Summit
Written by Nur Yasmin
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has urged ASEAN and the People's Republic of China (PRC) to continue to maintain their mutually respectful and mutually beneficial partnership that has lasted 30 years.
"The 30-year period is enough time to build trust between us," President Widodo said at the 24th ASEAN-China Summit, which was held virtually from the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java on Tuesday.
ASEAN and China share a common interest in building a peaceful and stable region, including in the South China Sea, by continuing to respect international law, he remarked.
"Our success in building a strong partnership, among other things, will be greatly influenced by how we manage the South China Sea," he said.
In addition, ASEAN and China share a common interest in continuing to build partnerships to improve welfare, he said.
ASEAN does not want to be caught between rivalries that could prove detrimental, he emphasized.
"ASEAN actually wants to develop cooperation in an open, inclusive manner, with all partners in four priority areas, namely maritime, connectivity, achieving the SDGs, and strengthening investment trade," he said.
The President further said he believes that the partnership that has been built for 30 years should be seen as a strong asset.
"If we are successful in this collaboration, a comprehensive strategic partnership will be a necessity," he remarked. (Antaranews)
October
Good potential for ASEAN-Korea partnership in green economy: Jokowi
Written by Nur Yasmin
ASEAN and the Republic of Korea need to take advantage of the great potential for partnerships to push green and digital economy for the welfare of the global community, Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said.
“I have a view that this partnership should focus on the future economy, namely digital and sustainable green economy. The potential of the digital economy and green economy sector is huge," he said while joining the 22nd ASEAN-Republic of Korea Summit virtually from the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, on Tuesday.
ASEAN's digital economy potential is estimated to reach US$200 billion by 2025, while the green economy opportunities in the Southeast Asia region will reach US$1 billion in 2030, he noted.
"On the other hand, the Korean Deal project, which includes digital and green economy, is worth US$144 billion until 2025. The digital market potential in Korea is estimated to reach US$236 billion by 2030 and contribute 13 percent to the gross domestic product," the President said.
He then invited ASEAN countries and the Republic of Korea to focus on supporting a conducive environment for policy-making for the development of a green and digital economy, establishing a good ecosystem, expanding investment, and supporting technology transfer, research and development in the two sectors.
The ASEAN-Korea partnership is expected to further strengthen concrete cooperation in a number of fields, namely infrastructure and green industry, clean energy, new renewable energy, energy efficiency, electric cars, economic digitization, including MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises), and health services, he said.
"This collaboration will show that decarbonization actions can go hand in hand with economic development. The win-win paradigm is not zero-sum," Widodo remarked.
"ASEAN and Korea's partnership in the digital and green economy can not only accelerate economic recovery but also maintain the sustainability of our planet for future generations," he added. (Antaranews)
October
COP-4 host Indonesia serious about eliminating mercury use: official
Written by Nur Yasmin
By hosting the 4th Minamata Convention Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-4), Indonesia expects to contribute to handling and eliminating the use of mercury in the country, an official has said.
"Indonesia's contribution strengthens the reduction and elimination of mercury, that is for sure," director general of waste, toxic, and hazardous materials management (PSLB3) at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK), Rosa Vivien Ratnawati, said at a press conference here on Tuesday.
As the host, Indonesia can demonstrate its seriousness in tackling mercury use to the global community, she affirmed.
By hosting the COP-4 Minamata Convention, which will be conducted online in November 2021 and face-to-face in 2022, Indonesia will be able to attract world recognition and secure its leadership role in global environmental diplomacy, Ratnawati said.
In addition, Indonesia will also push for a global declaration to eradicate illegal mercury trade in an on-site meeting, which is planned to be held in Bali in March 2022, she informed.
Meanwhile, expert staff for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Muhsin Syihab, who is also the head of the Indonesian Delegation to COP-4, informed that the declaration is expected to strengthen international cooperation on fighting illegal mercury trade that can harm both humans and the environment.
"With international cooperation, we hope to suppress mercury illegal trade, as well as to support the goal of the Minamata Convention itself: eradicating the use of mercury," Syihab remarked.
Indonesia has managed to reduce mercury use in the manufacturing sector, he said. In the battery industry specifically, mercury use was successfully reduced by 190.98 kg in 2019 and 219.26 kg in 2020, he informed.
In the lamp industry, the use of mercury was reduced by 135.70 kg in 2019 and 155.12 kg the following year, he said.
In 2019, the health industry withdrew 118,730 units of medical devices that used mercury such as dental amalgam, thermometers, and sphygmomanometers, he added.
In 2020, 72,292 units of medical devices containing 4,731.6 kg of mercury were also discarded, he disclosed.
The use of mercury was lowered by 10,450 kg in 2019 and 2020 in the small-scale gold mining sector (PESK), and by 560 kg in 2019 and 710 kg in 2020 in the energy sector, he said. (Antaranews)
October
Indonesia confirms rise in COVID-19 cases within WHO safe limit
Written by Nur Yasmin
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has confirmed that the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases in Indonesia has shown an increase in the last two weeks.
"We have observed that there have been 105 districts/cities across 34 provinces in Indonesia which have started to show a rise in COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks," he said at a press conference on ‘Evaluation of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM)’, which was streamed on the Coordinating Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Investment's YouTube channel on Monday.
Since July 2021, the number of positive COVID-19 cases in all regions in Indonesia had tended to decline, he noted.
However, recently, infections have increased again, but fortunately, they are still within the safe limit set by the World Health Organization (WHO), the minister said.
“Still, we are trying to anticipate it. We should not be euphoric excessively due to the decline and let our guard down. We will strive to control the rise in those 105 districts/cities," he emphasized.
Indonesia added 460 COVID-19 confirmed cases and 30 deaths on Monday, taking the total confirmed cases to more than 4.2 million and the total deaths to more than 143 thousand.
"However, we find that several European countries are also experiencing an increase (in coronavirus infections)," the minister informed.
Hence, the ministry will continue to strengthen precautionary steps to anticipate the next wave of COVID-19 through the enforcement of PPKM, tracking and testing of patients’ close contacts, and surveillance of the new SARS-CoV-2 variant, he said.
"We have been aware that there is a new worrying variant called AY.4.2 spreading in the United Kingdom. It has not entered Indonesia yet. However, we will continue to monitor its development,” he added. (Antaranews)