Being a Showcase in the ESC B20 Task Force, Pertamina Accelerates Energy Mix Improvements with Binary Units

Manado, April 27, 2022 – Energy, Sustainable & Climate Business 20 (ESC B20) Task Force continues to accelerate energy mix increase to suppress climate change, use clean energy, and reduce carbon emissions.

To support this acceleration, Pertamina, through the Pertamina New Renewable Energy Sub Holding, initiated a geothermal installed capacity increase through Binary technology application by building a Binary Unit to generate additional potential electricity capacity of up to 25 MW.

Nicke Widyawati, President Director of PT Pertamina (Persero), explained that the Binary Unit is a facility that utilizes brine (liquid / geothermal water) which is re-injected into the earth to generate electricity. Therefore, it can increase generated electricity capacity

“This is one of the quick wins for Indonesia to increase its energy mix from new and renewable energy. First, from the upstream side, the construction of this Binary Unit does not require new wells exploration, so it is faster, and the investment is lower. Second, the construction is faster because the system is modular. Therefore, investment is also more efficient,” said Nicke.

One of the geothermal working areas that have developed a binary unit is the Lahendong area, managed by PT Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE).

PGE in the Lahendong area has contributed significantly to the electricity system supply in the North Sulawesi region, amounting to 20% or around 120 MW of the 589 MW installed capacity of the area.

"This has exceeded the average for other regions because, in general, the new and renewable energy supply portion is an average of 12% in the electricity system," said President Director of Pertamina, Nicke Widyawati, on Monday, April 25, 2022, at the PGE Office in the Lahendong area, Tomohon, North Sulawesi.

The installed capacity in PGE's geothermal area in Lahendong comes from the six Geothermal Power Plants (PLTP) that have been operated. In the future, PGE has a long-term development plan by adding two new PLTP units, each of which has a 20 MW estimated capacity.

Nicke continued that with low investment, the electricity production cost can also be lower. The larger the Binary Unit that is operated, the greater the additional electricity. Thus, the overall investment can be cheaper.

"We see that Indonesia with a potential of 28,000 MW in geothermal. It is the only renewable energy with the best load. It means that geothermal energy is always available and does not require backups, such as intermittent wind or solar energy. Moreover, binary is also a solution that can reduce electricity rates, and its availability has been confirmed," said Nicke.

In line with Nicke, Dannif Danusaputro, President Director of PT Pertamina Power Indonesia, Subholding PNRE Pertamina, said, the Binary Unit in Lahendong, North Sulawesi, will be a milestone for the binary technology application that will be developed in other PGE geothermal work areas.

"This is exceptional. We want to immediately increase the energy mix from geothermal energy in the electrical system. This binary is one of the breakthroughs," said Dannif.

Pertamina, as a pioneer in geothermal development in Indonesia, which was continued by PGE, has nearly 40 years of experience in operating geothermal fields.

Currently, Indonesia is ranked second in geothermal development in the world, with a 2,276 MW installed capacity. Around 82 percent of the total geothermal capacity installed in Indonesia is contributed by the PGE Working Area, which consists of 672 MW independently operated and 1,205 MW carried out through Joint Operation Contracts, with 9.7 tons of CO2 per year potential emission avoidance contribution.

"The additional 600 MW will be 200 MW from the Binary Unit and the rest from new developments," added the Director of Operations of PGE, Eko Agung Bramantyo.

Through this new renewable energy program, Pertamina plays a role in energy transitions development, especially in supporting local domestic resources or local resources to support the surrounding community economy by ensuring the Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) implementation becomes an integrated part of Pertamina's geothermal business. The ESG aspects implementation is an effort to provide added value and Pertamina's support for government programs related to new, renewable energy utilization that is environmentally friendly, especially geothermal.**