Jakarta, Gatra.com – The G20 Summit on November 15-16 also discussed the issue of the energy transition. As a result, several member state agreement documents show commitment to the energy transition, one of which is the Background Note on Mitigating Corruption Risks in Renewable Energy.
The National Coordinator of the civil society organization Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Indonesia, Aryanto Nugroho said that there were several important notes in this background note. This must be a concern, especially for Indonesia, which has mineral resources as a substitute for coal resources in the future towards clean energy.
“Although the title is mitigating corruption risks in new renewable energy, we read several important notes from this background note document. First, the critical minerals industry plays an important role in developing renewable energy. Second, low-carbon technology requires minerals more intensively than fossil fuel technology,” he explained in a discussion entitled “Reflection on the Just Energy Transition Agenda in Indonesia’s Mineral Supply Chain Policy,” Wednesday (21/12).
He also explained that increasing the application of modern renewable energy technology will increase the demand for rare earth elements and other mineral inputs. This should be an essential concern because it can be exploited.
“If we want to encourage cleaner technology, we need more minerals, meaning that developing clean energy is the same as extracting minerals. Moreover, the demand for copper, iron, tin, neodymium, and zinc is expected to increase by more than 200% by 2050,” he explained.
In addition, graphite, lithium, and cobalt production will also have to increase by more than 450% by 2050 to meet the demand for energy storage technologies. This possibility is in line with the scenario of efforts to limit the increase in average global temperature.
Ary mentioned how Indonesia is facing this energy transition process. He said that Indonesia needs to pay attention to its readiness. According to him, Indonesia is the owner of significant mineral reserves. However, it should be noted that the transition to clean energy also requires the proper infrastructure to produce the fuel.
“There is an effort to exploit minerals massively. Do not let, in the name of clean energy, exploitation is carried out on a large scale. If Indonesia is heading towards an industrialized country, the question is not whether these minerals are needed for clean energy alone but for other industries,” he said.
An interesting note is brought to Ary’s attention in this document. This is related to the role of the private sector in overcoming corruption risks in the energy sector. In Indonesia alone, based on the findings of the KPK, corruption problems in the mining sector include illegal exports, tax payment discrepancies, and the absence of contributions to the local economy that bring losses to the State.
“The risk of corruption is not only prevented by the government but requires the private sector to prevent corruption or the risk of corruption.”
With the high potential for corruption, he encouraged supervision efforts to be carried out by various parties. Encouragement for companies to comply with existing laws must also continue to be done so that corruption mitigation can occur.
“We are talking about what the KPK, the police, and law enforcement in Indonesia should do. They must be encouraged to carry out prevention and prosecution. The private sector is also encouraged as an important actor in preventing it,” he concluded.
Source: Gatra