Hanoi (VNA) - Indonesia should shift to using renewable energy inthe context that the country’꧒s oil and gas industry is facing difficultiesꦬ,according to The ASEAN Post.

Such a move would not only save costs, it would also be beneficial for futuregenerations to come, said an article on The ASEAN Post. Indonesia’s oil and gas industry has seen turbulent times over the last 10years, with the 2008 financial crisis as a turning point for the industry as awhole, according to the article. The country’s oil and gas sector used to be one of the highest contributors tothe Indonesian economy. The contribution of oil and gas to Indonesia’s nationalrevenue experienced the sharpest decline during the oil crisis which occurredduring 2014 to 2015. Despite a growing economy with increasing demand for energy, the oil and gassector in the country is shrinking, with its glory days long past. According toan analysis of Indonesia’s oil and gas sector last August, investment for oiland gas exploration in Indonesia contracted to 100 million USD in 2016, downfrom 1.3 billion USD in 2012, said the article. The article cited PwC’s Oil and Gas in Indonesia 2017 report, highlighting thatIndonesia is facing a depletion in oil resources, and is facing difficultydiscovering new reserves as well. In a way, this may represent a chance forIndonesia to move away from fossil fuels and to invest further in renewableenergy. Indonesia is already trying to refocus its efforts towards consolidating itsgeothermal resources. At the moment, according to the International EnergyAgency (IEA), Indonesia is the third-largest geothermal power producer in theworld. The Energy Ministry plans to raise the nation’s geothermal productioncapacity to 5,000 MW by 2025. The increase in geothermal energy could see adecrease in Indonesia’s reliance on oil, said the article. Aside from that, the Indonesian government has announced that it is looking toconvert old oil refineries into biodiesel plants, hoping this move would reduceenergy imports and improve the country’s current account deficit. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) noted in a 2017 report thatIndonesia has set a goal to achieve 23 percent renewable energy use in itstotal energy supply by 2025, with the target rising to 31 percent by 2050. According to the IRENA report, Indonesia has the potential to meet its targeteven sooner, by 2030. IRENA also notes that an accelerated pursuit ofIndonesia’s target could see associated economic benefits to the country as awhole. These include the reduction of energy systems costs as well as the costsof air-pollution and carbon-dioxide emissions, which would help the countrysave up to 53 billion USD per year by 2030 – about 1.7 percent of its projectedgross domestic output in 2030.-VNA