New, renewable energy bill to roll out red carpet for nuclear power
Nuclear power will soon have a stronger foothold in Indonesia’s energy regulatory framework. Back in Presidential Regulation (PP) No. 79/2014 on national energy policy, nuclear power was considered as the last resort in securing the country’s energy demand due to its high risk and radiation impacts. However, in the latest draft of the long-awaited new and renewable energy (NRE) bill, nuclear has an equal, if not greater, importance as other energy sources, as a huge chunk of the draft specifically discusses the new energy.
In comparison with PP No. 79/2014, the coverage of nuclear energy in the NRE bill is extensive. Whereas in the PP nuclear is only discussed as a part of a few articles that discuss different aspects of energy, the bill has six articles dedicated to nuclear in addition to parts of articles that discuss nuclear along with other energy types under various topics.
The NRE draft bill regulates different energy types in separate sections, Section 5 for new energy and Section 6 for renewable energy. Section 5 stipulates six types of new energy and consists of 21 articles, from Article 9 to Article 29, six of which specifically discuss nuclear energy. Meanwhile, Section 6 stipulates more than nine types of renewable energy and only consists of 18 articles, from Article 30 to Article 47, with no specific renewable energy type discussed in detail.
Indonesia has made considerable progress in establishing its first nuclear power plant over the past several years. Starting with including nuclear energy in the national energy strategy with PP No. 79/2014, Indonesia has achieved 16 out of 19 infrastructure issues in the first phase of nuclear power development and will soon reach its first milestone of making a knowledgeable commitment to a nuclear power program. The three infrastructure issues that are still not ready are national position, management and stakeholder involvement.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry recently formed the country’s Nuclear Energy Program Implementing Organization (NEPIO), which is responsible for developing the planning for nuclear power plants (PLTN) in the long term, starting from the technical planning, budgeting, coordinating and supervision of PLTN construction to radioactive waste disposal arrangements, before the country can make a firm decision to develop a nuclear power program and formally enter the second phase of nuclear power development.
There is no clear indication that the NEPIO would prepare a bill that specifically regulates nuclear energy to replace the obsolete Law No. 10/1997 on nuclear. The new energy’s best bet for a legal umbrella is the upcoming NRE bill that has yet to pass into law.
Nuclear energy still has a long way to go to electrify Indonesia. In addition to issuing the NRE bill and other implementing regulations, the NEPIO needs to get all stakeholders to agree to developing the controversial energy. Meanwhile, nuclear is still highly controversial and public acceptance of nuclear power is low.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) publication on Evaluation of the Status of National Nuclear Infrastructure Development, there are three phases in nuclear power infrastructure development. Starting with establishing a legal basis to include nuclear power as an option in the national energy strategy, countries can then start the first phase, which is to examine 19 infrastructure issues before a decision to launch a nuclear power program is made. The first milestone after the first phase is carried out is to make a knowledgeable commitment to a nuclear power program.
Then, countries may start the preparatory work for the contracting and construction of a nuclear power plant for all the 19 infrastructure issues after a policy decision has been made. The second milestone after this second phase, which at least takes 10 to 15 years, is to invite bids/negotiate a contract for the first nuclear power plant. Finally, in the last phase, activities to implement the first nuclear power plant are carried out. The final milestone is the readiness to commission and operate the first power plant.
The 19 infrastructure issues are: 1) national position, 2) nuclear safety, 3) management, 4) funding and financing, 5) legal framework, 6) safeguards , 7) regulatory framework, 8) radiation protection , 9) electrical grid, 10) human resource development, 11) stakeholder involvement, 12) site and supporting facilities, 13) environmental protection, 14) emergency planning, 15) nuclear security, 16) nuclear fuel cycle, 17) radioactive waste management, 18) industrial involvement and 19) procurement.
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