More Regulations Needed to Ensure Safety in Indonesia's Electric Vehicle Development

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Developed and developing countries share common interests to accelerate equitable and solid economic recovery to tackle the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and sustainable development.

In doing so, coordinated actions continue to take place through bilateral and multilateral cooperation among nations. The recent G20 Bali Leaders’ Declaration addressed the current global challenges as the 20 major economies, including Indonesia, committed to taking further actions in many areas, such as investment and renewable energy.

Indonesia -- the largest archipelago in the world with over 17,000 islands -- is determined to prioritize the clean energy transition following its target for reducing carbon emissions and net zero emissions by 2060. The country continues to create a greener industry and infrastructure by developing electric vehicles (EVs) to reduce pollution.

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With a growth of eight percent per year in electric passenger cars, Indonesia is ready to accelerate the electric vehicle transition. Besides, as the largest producer of nickel with 21 million metric tons, copper 20 million tons, bauxite 1.2 billion tons, and cobalt 0.6 metric tons, the Southeast Asian country could no longer be dependent on imports of raw material supplies.

Regulations for electric cars

The government has prepared policies to support investment that can benefit economic transformation, including electric vehicle development. However, there is a need to draft electric vehicle laws and regulations more detail such as in certification for EV and safety aspects.

The standard requirements should touch on the issues:

First is vehicle safety. It refers to the safety aspects relevant to the driver, other road users, mechanics, and safety services. The standards that all plug-in hybrid and electric passenger cars must meet.

Second is battery damage. The government should issue EV battery standards to ensure the safety of electric cars, especially for flood-prone areas in Jakarta.

Government’s roles

The Indonesian Government should consider standardized testing involving immersion of vehicle batteries in water as standard components.

In Europe, where electric cars continue to gain popularity, there are various standards for batteries underwater. As a result, the electric vehicle batteries remains working even if completely immersed.

The standards make a difference between the battery being fully submerged and partially submerged in water. A potential difference between these two scenarios is that no oxygen can reach the battery when the car is completely submerged. But, in the case of partial immersion, this might still be possible.

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