Rich Nations Target $20 Billion to Wean Indonesia Off Coal

NUSA DUA, KOMPAS.com - Rich nations pledged Tuesday, Nov. 15, to raise at least $20 billion to help wean Indonesia off coal and reach carbon neutrality by 2050, a decade earlier than planned, the White House said.

The United States, Japan, Canada, and six European countries signed the accord with Jakarta on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali to ensure a “just power sector transition” away from Indonesia’s coal-dependent economy, they said in a statement released by the White House.

Under the deal, Indonesia, home to the world’s third-largest rainforest, pledges to be carbon-neutral by 2050, -- 10 years earlier than previously planned -- and to almost double its renewable energy generation by 2030.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo hailed the deal, which follows a similar agreement for South Africa last year, as a model that could be replicated in other countries to meet the world’s climate goals.

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“Indonesia is committed to using our energy transition to achieve a green economy and drive sustainable development,” he said, pledging the deal would help “accelerate this transition”.

Sponsors of the agreement said Jakarta had committed to an ambitious shift to clean energy in return for $10 billion in public sector finance and $10 billion in private funding over three to five years.

The financing included “grants, concessional loans, market-rate loans, guarantees and private investments” for the country, which has one of the largest coal reserves in the world.

US President Joe Biden said the deal showed “countries can dramatically cut emissions and increase renewable energy while... creating quality jobs and protecting livelihoods and communities.”

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