The biogas development in the Indonesian power generation sector

Climate change, pollution, and energy insecurity are currently critical worldwide problems. To improve worldwide energy security and supply, new policies regarding renewable energy and new infrastructure should be developed. Since 2006, Indonesia’s dependency on oil imports has been increasing significantly. Recent policies on renewable energy have been issued to cope with the issue. This study focuses on describing the feasibility of using biogas for energy production in Indonesia. Biogas contains 50–70% methane and 30–50% carbon dioxide and has a calorific value of 21–24MJ/Nm3. Therefore, it can be potentially altered to contain 97% methane prior to injecting into natural gas networks. The prospective derivation of biogas from cattle, pig, and chicken waste in Indonesia could reach approximately 79 Trillion Watt-hours (TWh). In order to use biogas for power generation, two scenarios were created. The electricity demand, the environmental impact and the reduction of GHG emissions were considered over the next 20 years. The first scenario depended on current energy policy and the second scenario depended on biogas as a substitute for the fossil fuel that is still used for generating power. The carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were estimated for each scenario. A resource analysis of the biogas derived from animal wastes was estimated and the economics of biogas production were described. Finally, the most recent renewable energy policies were described to promote the development of this sector.