MORE RELIABLE THAN SOLAR AND WIND POWER
Indonesia is one of the top geothermal energy producers in the world, with more than 300 sites.
On the slopes of Mount Guntur, an active stratovolcano in the West Java province, for instance, geothermal energy is harnessed from the Kamojang crater.
Geothermal exploration began in Kamojang in 1926, and the first geothermal well was drilled there during the Dutch colonial era.
After nearly 100 years, the well is still emitting steam continuously at a high pressure today.
The Kamojang geothermal power field, the first in Indonesia, is managed by Pertamina Geothermal Energy.
“The advantage of a geothermal system is that it can operate 24 hours, seven days a week,” said Mr Hanifah Bagus Sulistyardi, operations manager at Pertamina Geothermal Energy (Kamojang).
“The energy supply is not intermittent, compared with solar. The solar energy power plant can only operate a certain number of hours per day, and it cannot operate at night.”