Bahlil’s new position has come under scrutiny over its contradictory nomenclature.
BETAHITA.ID – Bahlil’s new position has come under scrutiny over its contradictory nomenclature. The Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition oversees nickel downstreaming, which is powered by captive coal-fired power plants. Meanwhile, the energy transition agenda emphasizes moving away from fossil fuels.
On 1 October 2026, President Prabowo Subianto inaugurated Bahlil Lahadalia as Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition under Presidential Decree No. 104/P/2026 on the Dismissal and Appointment of Ministers and Deputy Ministers of the Red and White Cabinet for the 2024–2029 Term. Bahlil continues to serve as Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM).
The Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Indonesia Coalition has questioned the consolidation of downstreaming and energy transition agendas under a single coordinating minister. To date, the Presidential Regulation (Perpres) governing the structure, authority, and ministries under this newly established coordinating ministry has yet to be issued.
PWYP Indonesia considers that combining two conflicting agendas under a single nomenclature risks reducing the energy transition to a mere label rather than a measurable target.
PWYP Indonesia Coordinator Aryanto Nugroho pointed to two examples of this contradiction. First, coal downstreaming risks prolonging demand for coal. A coal gasification project to produce methanol, developed by Arutmin and KPC through PT Bumi Etam Chemical, requires approximately 7.7 million tonnes of low-calorific-value coal annually. The project involves an investment of US$2.5 billion, with production targeted to begin in late 2029.
Second, nickel downstreaming relies on captive coal-fired power plants. According to data from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and Global Energy Monitor, operational captive coal-fired power capacity reached 19.3 GW in 2025 and could exceed 31 GW if projects under construction and in the planning stage are included. This expansion is concentrated in nickel industrial areas in Central Sulawesi and North Maluku.
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s national coal production reached 836.1 million tonnes in 2024, more than double the 400-million-tonne ceiling set out in the National Energy General Plan (RUEN) under Presidential Regulation No. 22/2017.
“Combining the energy transition with downstreaming that still relies on coal, whether through coal gasification or combustion in captive coal-fired power plants supplying nickel smelters, risks trapping us in false solutions. At the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro in November 2024, the President announced plans to phase out coal-fired and fossil-fuel power plants within 15 years and expressed confidence that Indonesia could achieve net-zero emissions before 2050. Those commitments will be difficult to measure when the same ministerial portfolio is also promoting projects that lock in coal demand for the long term,” Aryanto said on Tuesday (6 October 2026).
He added that this concurrent appointment highlights three mutually reinforcing roles held by Bahlil. As Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, he oversees the upstream sector and licensing. As Coordinating Minister, he will coordinate relevant ministries and agencies, including the Ministry of Investment and Downstreaming.
He also serves as Head of the Task Force for the Acceleration of Downstreaming and National Energy Resilience, established under Presidential Decree No. 1/2025, which is tasked with identifying strategic projects and resolving obstacles to their implementation.
In addition, Bahlil serves as Executive Chair of the National Energy Council, in accordance with Law No. 30/2007.
“When the regulator, the coordinating authority, and the official responsible for accelerating projects are the same person, operating from the same building, there is no internal layer of oversight to scrutinize decisions when downstreaming targets conflict with energy transition objectives. This is a governance design problem,” Aryanto stated.
PWYP Indonesia is urging the government to ensure that the Coordinating Ministry for Downstreaming and Energy Transition operates with a clear roadmap that distinguishes between downstreaming projects that lock in fossil energy dependence and projects that genuinely reduce domestic emissions.
A just transition plan must cover workers, affected communities, and coal- and nickel-producing regions. The government must also disclose the form and value of downstreaming incentives for each project, including the status of the proposed zero-percent royalty arrangement.
Furthermore, PWYP Indonesia calls for publicly accessible and downloadable emissions data from captive coal-fired power plants in industrial areas.
Source: Betahita