Antara News·Indonesia·Monday, October 12, 2026 at 02:11 PM UTC

Indonesia has resources to develop nuclear power, DEN member says

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Putu Indah S, Resinta Sulistiyandari

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia has the resources, regulations and potential sites to develop nuclear power, but needs a task force to consolidate existing capabilities into a national program, National Energy Council (DEN) member Sripeni Inten Cahyani said.

“We already have the resources, but we have not consolidated them. There is no indication for us to start. Thus, a task force is needed,” she said in a statement issued here Monday.

She said the next step was to coordinate existing resources and institutions under a clearly defined national program.

West Kalimantan and Bangka Belitung are among the regions being considered for nuclear power plants, with site selection linked to local electricity demand and industrial development.

Small modular reactors (SMRs) are among the technologies under consideration for the initial phase, potentially supplying industrial zones and other areas with high or specialized electricity needs.

Sripeni said nuclear power planning should account for rising electricity demand from industry, economic zones, data centers, artificial intelligence and households.

Syaiful Bakhri, head of the Nuclear Energy Research Organization at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), said 19 infrastructure requirements must be met, including technology, human resources, site suitability and funding.

“I think Indonesia is ready with these various components. We already have the human resources,” he said.

SMRs are also being considered for early deployment because they could serve industrial areas and locations with specific or substantial power requirements.

Under the government’s long-term energy policy, nuclear power capacity is projected to reach 35 to 42 gigawatts by 2060, accounting for about 11.7 to 12.1 percent of the primary energy mix.

Indonesia aims to begin operating its first commercial nuclear power plant in 2032, with a planned capacity of 250 megawatts, according to state utility PLN’s 2025–2034 Electricity Supply Business Plan.

Syaiful said the plan aligns with projections for national electricity demand and generation capacity to expand substantially. Deploying commercially available reactor technology could accelerate development if Indonesia needs an additional 7, 35 or 45 gigawatts of nuclear capacity.

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