Innovative Approaches to Energy Diversification Highlighted in Alumni Connect and Indonesian Oil & Gas Community Webinar
ENERGYWORLD.CO.ID – The first volume of the webinar series organized by the Department of Digital Energy, Minerals, and Investment (DEMI) Association of Indonesians graduated from Overseas University (Alumni Connect PPI Dunia), in collaboration with Indonesian Oil and Gas Community (KMI), was successfully held yesterday. The event was broadcast live on the PPI TV YouTube channel and attracted participants from academia, bureaucracy, state-owned enterprises, private sector, activists, and energy enthusiasts.
“This program aims to educate, provide a platform for aspirations, and open up discussions between experts and stakeholders. This is a pentahelix intellectual movement to consolidate various roles to realize sustainable policies and businesses,” said Muhammad Iksan Kiat, Chairman of Digital Energy Minerals and Investments (DEMI) Alumni Connect PPI Dunia.
The first volume of the webinar, themed “Energy Diversification and Clean Energy Technology: Clean Coal Technology, Transgas Pipeline and LNG, and CCUS for a Resilient, Reliable, and Sustainable Energy Mix,” featured prominent speakers from various sectors. The event began with a speech by Heri Putranto, Chairman of Komunitas Migas Indonesia, emphasizing the importance of discussing global energy issues and transitioning to cleaner energy sources.
Experts’ Views
Dr. Julian A. Shiddiq, Director of Mineral and Coal Program Development, stated that “Coal remains a primary energy source and a buffer for Indonesia until renewable energy can reach the desired portion according to national energy mix targets. To anticipate the impacts of climate change, coal can be optimized through technological innovation to replace existing plants with baseload EBT plants such as Biomass Cofiring. Additionally, through the application of Clean Coal Technology innovations, including IGCC and CCS/CCUS.”
Dr. Nuki Agya, Executive Director of the ASEAN Center for Energy, opined that “If we must phase out coal, the problem lies in reducing our capability to secure our energy supply, as we have abundant hydrocarbon resources and will exacerbate our dependence on less secure energy resources. PV and WIND production processes are 90% in China. We don’t have enough time to catch up. Even if we force wind and solar production in Southeast Asia, it would take 20 years. And in 20 years, it’s not guaranteed that our PV and WIND prices will be cheaper because China’s infrastructure is already perfect to make PV and WIND costs very cheap. If we depend on technology from other countries, we depend on our energy security from other countries, which is not a category of energy security. We fall into the trap of energy insecurity, so we can’t rely on our energy supply.”

Dr. Ardian Nengkoda, Senior Professional at Saudi Aramco and Representative of SPE, added from the oil and gas perspective, “Some skillsets from the oil and gas industry can be applied, transformed, and transferred to renewable energy. For example, expertise in drilling can be transformed into wind engineering. From a drilling engineer to a generalist engineer, then to a wind engineer. Besides that, we from SPE are building serious research on geothermal and ready to scale up worldwide. This energy security factor cannot be separated from Indonesia. Indonesia’s oil and gas production is only around 550-600 thousand barrels per day, while consumption is 1.2 million. Where does the difference come from? From imports. Indonesia has a big task to fill that gap, for example, from bioresources, renewable energy, etc.”

Dr. Anggawira, Chairman of the Indonesian Energy and Coal Trade Association (ASPEBINDO), highlighted the challenges faced by medium-level business players in optimizing their potential. “When demand is high, they have difficulty increasing production due to difficulties obtaining financing and heavy equipment. The time that should be optimized for profit becomes suboptimal. Small and medium enterprises usually cannot access financing other than from banks. But from the banking sector, it’s already red. It would be better if the financial sector, such as OJK and banks, could implement more flexible policies, not directly supporting but sub-businesses like heavy equipment getting support.”

Future Outlook
This webinar marks the beginning of a series of Digital, Energy, Mineral, and Investment discussions aimed at exploring various aspects of energy diversification and technological advancements. The organizers will hold this webinar monthly with topics relevant to the digital, energy, mineral, and investment sectors.
Support and Collaboration
The event was supported by various organizations, including ASIDA, HIPMI, SPA, WPC, IATMI, PERHAPI, and FOKAL. Media partners such as Energy World, OG Indonesia, Ruang Energi, CSR, Jakarta Satu, and Listrik Indonesia also played a crucial role in promoting the event.
For more information and to watch the webinar recording, visit the PPI TV YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQqDBrWo5aU&t=4508s
