Indonesia Targets 53,000 Electric Vehicles for Government in 2022

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - Indonesian government is trying to use up to 53,000 electric vehicles for government agencies this year. This program is part of green economy development in the country. 

Director General of Land Transportation Hendro Sugiatno of the Ministry of Transportation said that decision is to enforce the ecosystem for the electric vehicles. The exact target is 53,119 vehicles for 2022. 

Earlier this year, President Joko Widodo also met Tesla founder Elon Musk in the United States. Jokowi encouraged Musk to produce cars in Indonesia. However, the plan failed because Indonesia did not like Musk's approach.

Hendro Sugiatno said the target for the usage of battery electric vehicles for the government will be applied for the central and regional government. The military will also be provided with the electric vehicles.

"For the target, Ministry of Transporation hopes there will be 53,119 government electric vehicles for all government instutitions, whether for ministries or agencies, or the regional government, and the Indonesian National Armed Forces and the Police of Indonesia," said Hendro Sugiatno in Jakarta, Tuesday (1/11/2022).

He also detailed that that target for 2022 is 13,236 unites two-wheeled vehicles and 39,883 four-wheeled vehicles for the operational vehicles.

Previously, an official from Ministry of Finance said the replacement should follow the procedure according the age of the existing vehicles.

"About the official cars, eventually it will all be done gradually according to the age of vehicles," explained Director of State Wealth Policy Formulation Encep Sudarwan. 

He also said the Ministry of Finance will have to decide based on the standards which are based based on the necessity. Furthermore, he explained the standard cars for the ministry are cars with 3000 cc, therefore the finance ministry will also formulate the standard policy for the electric vehicles.

Ministry of Transportation in Indonesia announced that the country has certified up to 31,827 electric vehicles in the country. The figure includes electric motorcycles. 

The certification refers to the SRUT (Sertifikat Registrasi Uji Tipe) or Testing Type Registration Certificate. 

Hendro Sugiatno from the Ministry of Transportation said that this significant development is welcomed by the brand holders.

"Up to 25 October 2022, the number of electric vehicles that have SRUT is reaching 31,827 units," said Hendro Sugiatno in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Previously, the ministry has also created the roadmap to support the acceleration of the battery electric vehicles program. The program is based on President Joko Widodo's policy in 2019.

To support the acceleration of electric vehicles usage in Indonesia, the government also provides fiscal incentives such as the cheaper cost for testing compared to the petrol-based vehicles.

For example, the test for petrol-based motorcycles cost Rp 9.5 million, but for the battery-based electric vehicles it only costs Rp 4.5 million.

Furthermore, the government also increases the tax for vehicles that use fossil fuel. The measure is taken to develop the green economy in the country.

Last month, Coordinating Ministry for Maritime and Investment Affairs, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, said that the government is ready to provide more incentive related to the green economy.

We open for all (investment) on whatever technology that they want to bring and we provide incentive," said Luhut.

Minister Luhut also sets a target for mass production of lithium batteries in Indonesia. The North Kalimantan Province will be an important place. 

North Kalimantan is one of Indonesia's youngest provinces. 

In North Kalimantan, we are building lithium battery production for three millions vehicles, and it is currently ongoing," said Minister Luhut during a G20 event in Bogor, West Java.

Minister Luhut predicts the production will effectively start in the second quarter of 2024. If it is successful, Indonesia can become the world's second biggest producers in 2028.

He praises that potential as a "good step".

Regarding the production of electric vehicles in Indonesia, Minister Luhut also wants South Korean Hyundai to produce 12,000 electric vehicles in 2023 for Indonesian people.

"Next year, we are pushing Hyundai to produce up to 12 thousands units of electric vehicles," said Minister Luhut.

Maulandy Rizky Bayu Kencana and Arief Aszhari contributed to this report.