the-hijackers-of-the-energy-transition-d98e63b108dc9869.pdf

The report argues that Indonesia's energy transition is being 'hijacked' by established conglomerates and politically connected elites who dominate the supply chain for biomass co-firing in coal-fired power plants (PLTU). It highlights that while PT PLN aims to replace 5-10% of coal with wood biomass by 2025, the land requirements for this—estimated between 2.3 million and 3.9 million hectares—threaten massive deforestation and land grabbing. The document identifies several large groups, including Sinarmas, Medco, and Jhonlin, as key actors using 'shadow companies' or political ties to secure concessions, often leading to conflicts with indigenous and local communities. It further notes a lack of transparency in biomass sourcing, where sawdust from small-scale businesses is used instead of the planned wood pellets, bypassing legality checks.

• The land area required to sufficiently supply wood biomass for co-firing in coal-fired power plants is estimated at a minimum of 2.3 million hectares if lamtoro gung trees are planted, and up to 3.9 million hectares if acacia trees are used.
• PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) aims to implement 10-percent biomass co-firing in 107 Coal-firing Power Plants across 52 locations by 2025 to increase the new and renewable energy (EBT) mix to 23 percent.
• Large conglomerates often use 'shadow companies' to hide beneficial ownership and evade legal repercussions or sustainability commitments. For example, PT Permata Nusa Mandiri is suspected to be linked to the Salim Group, and PT Muara Sungai Landak is linked to the Sinarmas Group despite the latter's denials.
• The development of energy wood plantations (HTE) poses a significant deforestation risk; Trend Asia estimates that 35.3% of the total areas of 31 HTE concession areas, or 491 thousand hectares, are natural forest areas.
• Biomass co-firing may create a 'carbon debt' where the carbon dioxide released during land clearing and biomass burning is not immediately absorbed by new plantations, with an estimated debt of 26.48 million tons of carbon emission.
• Field monitoring at PLTU Rembang, PLTU Indramayu, and PLTU Adipala Cilacap revealed that plants are sourcing sawdust from small-scale woodworking businesses rather than the wood pellets specified in PLN's 2021-2030 Electricity Supply Business Plan.
• The biomass supply chain lacks transparency and legality; many small-scale suppliers do not possess permits or labels from the Indonesian Timber Legality Assurance System (SVLk).
• HTE development has led to land conflicts and human rights issues, such as PT Selaras Inti Semesta (Medco Group) logging on Marind people's ulayat land in Papua and PT Sadhana Arifnusa (Sampoerna Group) conflicting with farming communities in West Nusa Tenggara.
• State-owned enterprises are heavily involved in biomass development, with Perhutani targeting 64 thousand hectares for biomass plantations and signing agreements with PLN to supply wood chips to PLTU Pelabuhan Ratu and PLTU Rembang.
• Political connections facilitate the acquisition of forest permits. For instance, PT Usaha Tani Lestari is linked to politician Edi Yosfi, and PT Jhonlin Agro Mandiri is owned by Haji Isam, who has close ties to President Joko Widodo.

APA

Indradi, Y., Hidayat, D., Oktaviani, A. R., Amali, Z., & Pramesthi, T. (n.d.). the-hijackers-of-the-energy-transition-d98e63b108dc9869.pdf. Trend Asia. https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/The-Hijackers-of-the-Energy-Transition.pdf

Chicago

Indradi, Yuyun, Dody Hidayat, Amalya Reza Oktaviani, Zakki Amali, and Twina Pramesthi. the-hijackers-of-the-energy-transition-d98e63b108dc9869.pdf. Trend Asia, n.d. https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/The-Hijackers-of-the-Energy-Transition.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Indradi |first1=Yuyun |last2=Hidayat |first2=Dody |last3=Oktaviani |first3=Amalya Reza |last4=Amali |first4=Zakki |last5=Pramesthi |first5=Twina |title=the-hijackers-of-the-energy-transition-d98e63b108dc9869.pdf |publisher=Trend Asia |url=https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/The-Hijackers-of-the-Energy-Transition.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{indradindthehijackersoftheenergytransitiond98e63b108dc9869pdf, author = {Indradi, Yuyun and Hidayat, Dody and Oktaviani, Amalya Reza and Amali, Zakki and Pramesthi, Twina}, title = {{the-hijackers-of-the-energy-transition-d98e63b108dc9869.pdf}}, institution = {Trend Asia}, url = {https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/The-Hijackers-of-the-Energy-Transition.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }