VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The government has targeted 13.4 percent of renewable shares in energy mix in 2020, Energy and Mineral Resource Minister Arifin Tasrif said. "The main national priority is to strengthen the economic resilience for quality growth," Tasrif said in a statement here Thursday.

The portion would be increased to 14.5 percent in 2021, 15.7 percent in 2022, 17.9 percent in 2023, and 19.5 percent in 2024, the minister remarked.

The number of renewable energy-based power plants is expected to increase in 2020, and its total capacity would be increased by 700 MW to reach 10,843 MW in 2020, Tasrif added.

The capacity would be increased gradually to reach 11,843 MW in 2021; 13,743 MW in 2022; 15,543 MW in 2023; and 19,243 MW in 2024.

Meanwhile, domestic consumption of biofuel is expected to reach 10 million kiloliter (kl) in 2020, and would be gradually increased to 10.2 million kl in 2021, 14.2 kl in 2022; 14.6 million kl in 2023; and 17.4 million kl in 2024.

The national economic resilience, he said, would also be supported by the operation of 52 smelters in 2024, 64 percent allocation of domestic gas use, and Domestic Market Obligation of 182 million tons of the total production target set at 628 million tons in the year.

The ministry has projected that in the next five years oil and gas lifting will increase to 1,953 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2020; 1,984 thousand boepd in 2021; 2,015 thousand boepd in 2022; 2,036 thousand boepd in 2023; and 2,057 boepd in 2024.

"By 2024, oil lifting is expected to reach 743 bpd and gas lifting reach 1,314 boepd," Tasrif said. (ANTARA)

The death toll from the flash flood that hit Central Tapanuli District, North Sumatra has climbed to nine, according to the Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD).

"The death toll has increased to nine," acting head of BPBD of Central Tapanuli District Ananda said here Thursday.

The number could increase further, Ananda added.

The flooding caused injuries to 22 people and inundated some 700 homes. At least 1,445 residents have sought refuge.

"Most of them did not spend the night here but chose to sleep in the homes of relatives. They only came here for food," he said.

Flooding due to torrential rain submerged seven villages in Barus Sub-district, Central Tapanuli District, North Sumatra, Wednesday morning.

The flood-affected villages were Kampung Mudik, Pasar Terandam, Bungo Tanjung, Kinali, Ujung Batu, Batu Gerigis, and Padang Masiang.

Evacuation posts and health posts have been established in the district to deal with residents affected by the natural disaster.

Meanwhile, the incessant heavy rains lashing the area since Tuesday led to extensive flooding that inundated at least 163 homes in South Tapanuli District, North Sumatra Province.

"The number of houses submerged has reached 163," Habibullah Harahap, the chief of Simataniari Village, Angkola Sangkunur Sub-district, stated Wednesday.

The floodwaters began entering the homes of residents at around 4 a.m. local time Wednesday, as the Sangkunur and Batang Toru rivers overflowed their banks.

"In Pardomuan hamlet, 96 families have been affected, while in Setia Baru there are 67 families. A total of 163 houses have been flooded," he stated.

The floodwaters in Pardomuan reached heights of up to two meters, while one-meter-high waters were recorded in Setia Baru.

Some 50 families were forced to flee to higher ground, he stated.

Indonesia is currently experiencing a rainy season after being hit by prolonged dry spell during last year's dry season. (ANTARA) 

The coronavirus outbreak has put a dent in Indonesia's tourism, as some 10 thousand Chinese tourists chose to scrap their plans to visit Bali, one of the world's most famous resort islands.

Chairperson of the Indonesian Travel Agent Association (Astindo) Elly Hutabarat confirmed here on Thursday that the corona virus outbreak had a significant impact on the growth in tourism in Indonesia and the world. This is since all flights to and from Wuhan were canceled.

"Of course, this virus will have an impact. Some 10 thousand Chinese tourists canceled trips to Bali. Moreover, trips from here to China are also canceled. We just have a travel advisory only for Wuhan. (In fact), everywhere seems to have been affected. China will also suffer," she remarked during a discussion with Travelport.

The trip cancellations were only to and from China but not other countries, including Singapore, where coronavirus cases were also detected, she clarified.

"There are no cancellations (of visits by) Indonesian consumers to Singapore. It keeps going," she noted.

However, she is optimistic that a decline in the number of tourists would be long-lasting, as a similar problem had cropped up in 2003.

"Right now, we just leave it to the Chinese government to secure the right medicine, but for how long, we do not know. In 2003, a SARS outbreak had also swept through China, and it also took a long time. I recollect that in Singapore, the Changi airport, which was earlier crowded, now wears a deserted look akin to a cemetery, as only some 10-20 people were seen. That was scary," she recalled. (ANTARA) 

Google is temporarily closing all of its offices in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan as a result of the coronavirus.

Other tech giants, including Amazon and Microsoft, have also taken action to protect staff from infection.

This week global corporations have been shutting operations in China and advising overseas staff not to visit the country.

Many employees are being asked to work from home or extend their Lunar New Year holiday.

Google said it is stopping staff travelling to China and Hong Kong, while employees currently in the country have been advised to leave as soon as possible and then work from home for a minimum of two weeks.

Google has four offices in mainland China, although the company has not said how many staff it employs there.

While Google's search engine is not available in China, its offices focus on sales and engineering for its advertising business.

Other global technology giants, including Microsoft and Amazon, have announced similar measures as they attempt to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.

"Out of an abundance of caution, we are restricting business travel to and from China until further notice and encouraging our employees to follow the health and safety guidelines provided by international health agencies", an Amazon spokesperson told the BBC.

Earlier this week Facebook became the first major US firm to tell staff to avoid travelling to China.

Meanwhile General Motors has become the latest big car maker to announce that it is extending its Lunar New Year holiday manufacturing plant closures. The US company said its Chinese factories will remain shut until 9 February.

On Wednesday Toyota also announced that its production plants in China will stay closed until 9 February. The Japanese car maker said the closures were in line with transport lockdowns imposed by Chinese authorities and as the company assesses its supply chain.

Several other international car companies operating in Wuhan, which is at the epicentre of the outbreak, have previously said they were taking action to bring staff back to their home countries.

French car making group PSA, which owns the brands Peugeot and Citroen, and Japan's Honda and Nissan have announced plans to evacuate staff and their families from China.

Wuhan is China's seventh biggest city and a major motor manufacturing hub. (BBC)