Indonesia Has Become World's 2nd Largest Geothermal Energy Producer
Indonesia has now overtaken the Philippines in terms of geothermal power capacity. At the end of Q1-2018 Indonesia's installed geothermal power capacity reached 1,925 MW, higher than the 1,868 MW capacity of the Philippines. Moreover, by the end of 2018, Indonesia is expected to see its geothermal power capacity rise to 2,058 MW. However, Indonesia is still far away from becoming the world's biggest geothermal power producer. Capacity of the USA currently stands at 3,591 MW, hence leading by a distance.
It is estimated that Indonesia controls about 40 percent of the world's total geothermal power reserves. However, Indonesia only uses a tiny fraction of this total potential. Currently, Southeast Asia's largest economy utilizes 11.0 percent of its existing geothermal reserves (estimated at 17,506 MW). Although still low, it is a much better figure than about five years ago (when the country used approximately 4 percent of its geothermal potential).
Additional geothermal capacity stems from the start of operations of the Plarah Karaha Unit 1 (30 MW) and the Sarulla Unit 3 (110 MW). In the remainder of 2018 the Sorik Marapi Modullar Unit 1 (20 MW), Sorik Marapi Marapi Modular Unit 2 (30 MW), Lumut Balai Unit 1 (55 MW) and Sokoria Unit 1 (5 MW) are expected to commence operations, thus adding more capacity to Indonesia's installed geothermal power generation capacity.
Rida Mulyana, Director General of Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation (in Indonesian: Energi Baru, Terbarukan dan Konservasi Energi, or EBTKE), said he is optimistic that investment in renewable energy in Indonesia will rise to USD $2 billion in 2018, up from USD $1.34 billion in the preceding year. The 2018 target includes USD $1.21 billion worth of investment in geothermal power.
It is an ambitious target but by 2023 the Indonesian government targets to overtake the USA as the world's largest geothermal power producer. To accomplish this the government offers both fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to investors.
Top Geothermal Power Producing Nations:
| Country | Installed Capacity (MW) |
| United States | 3,591 |
| Indonesia | 1,925 |
| Philippines | 1,868 |
| Turkey | 1,155 |
| New Zealand | 980 |
| Mexico | 951 |
| Italy | 944 |
| World | 14,276 |
Source: ThinkGeoEnergy