Not yet finished with the realization of the Merah Putih Village Cooperative (Kopdes), which is predicted to be the new motor of village economic sovereignty, the government has launched another big plan: building solar power plants (PLTS) in every village, complete with energy storage batteries through Kopdes. 

Unmitigated, the plan is for 80,000 villages to get one solar power plant with a capacity of 1 megawatt and a battery of 4 megawatt hours. In total, more than 80 gigawatts (GW) of distributed solar generation will be built, plus 20 GW of centralized generation. This project is not just a green energy ambition, it is being conceived as a community-based clean energy backbone.

"As directed by President Prabowo, we must build new renewable energy electricity from solar power. In the future, we will build approximately 100 GW," said Bahlil Lahadalia, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources on Tuesday (5/8/2025) as quoted by Antara.

For years, Indonesia's energy transition agenda has been dominated by large corporations. Now, the government is proposing a new approach: people's cooperatives. On paper, this promises decentralization and independence.

However, this giant project certainly can't go it alone. Technically, observers say this program is possible. One hectare of land in each village can be found. Solar power plant technology is now relatively cheap, modular, and quick to build. But one thing cannot be bought: human resource readiness. 

According to the calculations of Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), under this scheme, each village will become its own plant operator, under the village cooperative. This means that more than 35,000 new technical personnel will be needed every year to ensure that these solar power plants are built and maintained properly.

Fabby said the government should immediately form a special task force or project management unit that will handle the planning and supervision of this project nationally. Without this, village cooperatives will find it difficult to manage technical matters.

"Technical design, procurement, location mapping, must be handled at the national level," Fabby told SUAR on Friday (08/08). Meanwhile, the cooperative will act like a "village-scale PLN" that runs daily distribution and maintenance. 

However, a discourse of this magnitude cannot be built on wishful thinking and slide presentations alone.

Great potential, great challenges

For Fabby, the biggest challenge is not technology, but management, planning, finance and human resources. 

Three main stages must be taken seriously: planning, implementation and operation. For this reason, a specialized body such as a project management unit directly responsible to the President is urgently needed, managing the process from upstream to downstream, from design to execution. The cooperative will only take over when the plant is completed and put into operation.

The labor issue is also crucial. Building one solar power plant per village alone requires around 30-50 workers with specific technical skills. With a target of 20,000 solar power plants per year, Indonesia will need tens of thousands of trained technicians. However, this is also a great opportunity to create green jobs in the regions.

"Especially if supported by training from vocational institutions and cooperation with local vocational schools or universities. Young engineering graduates can immediately work as construction technicians or power plant operators in their own villages," Fabby said.

"Imagine, an engineering graduate working in a village as a power plant operator. That's cool," he continued.

Not only labor, the manufacturing aspect is also important. According to Fabby, if this project is actually implemented, there will be a huge surge in demand for solar modules. For this reason, the government needs to embrace the domestic industry, encourage tier-1 solar panel manufacturers to produce on a large scale, and reduce prices through bulk procurement mechanisms. This will not only reduce investment costs, but also create a strong domestic clean energy industry.

"That's why a bulk procurement mechanism was created, with relatively uniform prices," Faby said. If run well, Fabby believes cooperatives can become an independent and sustainable "village-scale PLN".

However, a project of this magnitude is costly. The government estimates the total funding needs to reach US$100 billion. Fabby does not deny that some of these funds will come from the state budget, but according to him, these funds should not be fully borne by the state.

"Building it also requires funds. Certainly for the beginning it was from the state budget. But not all of it. If this is managed properly, the government can also mobilize funding from other parties," said Fabby.

He also suggested a blended finance scheme: APBN through Danantara or PT SMI, plus loans from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), and Eurasian Bank (EDB). But no less important, Fabby emphasized that villagers can participate in owning PLTS through cooperatives, not just being beneficiaries.

"The community will become shareholders. At the end, they will get a return from the operation of this PLTS," he said.

Energy justice is not one-size-fits-all

Zaky Amali, a researcher at Trend Asia, also welcomed the solar power plant approach as a pioneer in energy democratization. However, he cautioned that a project of this size cannot be built with a one-size-fits-all approach. "We can't evenly distribute all villages to use PLTS," he said. 

Indonesia is an archipelago with very diverse topography, climate and renewable energy potential. Areas that are humid or often cloudy, for example, are more suitable for micro-hydro plants than solar power plants. "If we all use PLTS, it would contradict the spirit of a fair transition," said Zaky. 

Moreover, in the government's own official documents, such as the 2025-2034 RUPTL, the national PLTS development target until 2035 is only 17.1 GW - far from the 100 GW figure that was recently raised by public officials.

More than technical matters, Zaky reminded us of the importance of listening to the will of the villagers. "Does the community agree with the solar power plant? If not, what is the alternative solution?" he said.

The energy transition must not stop at technology. It must be equitable, participatory and bring real benefits.

Green or just etiquette?

The suspicion of this project cannot be separated from the long history of green projects that end up as greenwashing. Yuyun Indradi, Executive Director of Trend Asia, asks a more fundamental question: who exactly will benefit? 

"The wrapping of 'village' and 'cooperative' may give the impression of grassroots, but who controls the upstream?" he said.

If those who play remain large industry players, from nickel mines, quartz sand, smelters, to component suppliers, then what happens is not decentralization, but centralization with a new face. According to Yuyun, this project could be a renewable energy confection wrapped in a new centralization.

The main problem is not just technology and funding, but governance. Without strong accountability and public participation, villages could become new objects of exploitation, not by mining, but by "solar potential". 

"If not designed properly, the solar power plant becomes a dead building," said Fabby. Many renewable energy projects are stalled because they do not meet the needs, weak management, or poor quality.

Many EBT projects have stalled due to poor planning, weak management, or poor quality. Therefore, technical standardization is needed from the start, including plant designs that are compatible with the PLN network(on grid).

Yuyun mentioned the importance of safeguards development: protection of the environment and affected communities, including the right to information, consent and full involvement from the design stage to operations. Therefore, technical standardization is needed from the start, including the design of plants that are compatible with the PLN network(on grid).

Who's holding the switch?

Mada Ayu Habsari from the Indonesian Solar Energy Association (AESI) welcomed all efforts to accelerate energy generation. According to her, PLTS is very suitable for 3T (Disadvantaged, Frontier, Outermost) villages. However, he warned of the "consumptive" potential of residents after being electrified. "Will electricity encourage productivity, or is it over-consumption?" he asked.

AESI also highlighted the importance of community participation and ability to pay. On the industry side, solar PV and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) can open up new markets and attract investors.

Solar energy is not just about installing panels

For Bhima Yudhistira, Executive Director of the Center of Economic and Law Studies (Celios), the idea of encouraging energy independence in villages through cooperatives such as Kopdes Merah Putih is basically a progressive step. However, he emphasized, great enthusiasm alone is not enough. A project of this magnitude requires comprehensive readiness, not only in terms of technology, but also the supporting ecosystem.

"Solar panels can be installed in many places, but what is often forgotten is the human resources and assistance," said Bhima. Installation is just the initial stage. Maintenance, daily operation, and quick response when there is a disturbance still require technical personnel from the village itself.

In line with Fabby, Bhima said that the success of this kind of project will depend heavily on the existence of vocational schools, community-based training, and long-term support. If not, PLTS will only become a stalled installation, like many previous EBT (new renewable energy) projects that failed to operate because no one managed them.

Bhima also underlined the importance of building a domestic supply chain. "If all components are still imported, we are just moving energy dependence from fossil to foreign manufacturing," he said. Indonesia needs to develop the solar panel industry, storage batteries, and other supporting components for the project to really have an economic impact.

Apart from technical and human resource issues, land utilization is another important issue. Solar panels, on a large scale, require space. But villages do not always have idle land. So, creative approaches are needed: whether it's through rooftop installations, utilization of multiple farms, or agrovoltaic models like in Europe, where the top is installed with panels, and the bottom can still be used for farming.

"This is not new. Abroad, cattle or sheep farming can coexist with solar power plants," Bhima said. But in Indonesia, this approach has barely been explored in public policy.

Furthermore, Bhima reminded that the spirit of this energy transition should not be centered on one institutional model. "Community-based renewable energy does not have to be monopolized by Kopdes Merah Putih," he said. He pointed out that many communities have already developed micro-hydro or biomass independently.

"Why not help them, facilitate them, and then expand their scale? That can be faster and more effective than building from scratch," he said.

Who holds the money, who has access?

The issue of financing is also a big obstacle. According to Bhima, funding for such projects cannot rely solely on loans from Bank Himbara (Association of State-Owned Banks), as the ceiling is limited and Indonesia's financial sector policies are not yet friendly to renewable energy projects, let alone community-scale ones.

"The portion of Himbara Bank to renewable energy is still very small. Banking policy reform is needed so that they can actively channel loans," he said. Ideally, village energy cooperatives should also be given direct access to international schemes such as the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), so as not to wait for intermediation from the center.

Bhima suggested that the funding scheme be expanded and not exclusive. "If the access is only for new cooperatives formed by the government, it is not inclusive. All energy communities should be able to access green funding, both domestic and foreign grants," he said.

However, according to Bhima, all these big dreams will not mean much if the basic rules are not changed. One of the main obstacles is Indonesia's centralized electricity system. "Communities cannot sell electricity to neighboring villages because there is no power wheeling," Bhima said.

Power wheeling is the mechanism of sharing transmission or selling electricity through the state-owned grid. Without this policy, the electricity generated by a community can only be used by itself. This means that the business potential and economies of scale are limited.

Currently, electricity transmission is fully owned by PLN, and communities do not have access to utilize the network. "This must be reformed. If you really want to encourage community renewable energy, the regulations must favor the community, not just large corporations," said Bhima.