Indonesia moves closer to forming nuclear energy agency

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s Energy Ministry said on Wednesday that regulations to establish the country’s Nuclear Energy Program Implementation Organization (NEPIO) are moving toward the harmonization stage.

“We are pushing for it. It will soon enter the harmonization process ahead of official enactment,” Deputy Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Yuliot Tanjung told reporters in Jakarta.

He said a legal framework is needed to formally create NEPIO, which will be established through a Presidential Regulation (Perpres) rather than a Presidential Decree (Kepres) as initially planned.

The agency is designed to accelerate development of nuclear power plants (PLTN).

“We are currently drafting the Presidential Regulation, and coordination among ministries has already been completed,” Tanjung said.

The government has announced plans to begin building a 250-megawatt on-grid nuclear plant. While the facility was originally expected to be operational by 2032, officials are now working to advance the timeline to 2029.

The nuclear initiative is part of Indonesia’s broader strategy to expand power supply from new energy sources. According to the National Electricity General Plan (RUKN) 2025–2060, total generation capacity is forecast to reach 443 gigawatts by 2060, with 79 percent coming from renewable energy.

Previously, the Energy Ministry said it had prepared a simplified organizational structure for NEPIO, following a mandate from Minister Bahlil Lahadalia.

The structure will bring together representatives from all relevant ministries to coordinate the country’s nuclear energy program.