Indonesia has confirmed its plan to finalise the location for its first NPP by 2026 or 2027 at the latest. According to statements from the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, the final site selection is highly dependent on the chosen nuclear technology, with the government evaluating international partnership proposals from the US, South Korea, Japan, and Russia.
The aim is to have the first NPP commissioned and on the grid between 2032 and 2034. While the National Research & Innovation Agency (BRIN – Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional,) has mapped out 28 potential locations, current priority regions focus on Sumatra (including the Bangka Belitung Islands) and Kalimantan (specifically West Kalimantan).
Deputy for Energy and Mineral Resources Coordination at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Elen Setiadi, told a recent World Resources Institute (WRI) Indonesia seminar that nuclear power development is critical to ensuring a reliable, competitive, and sustainable power supply capable of supporting national economic growth and industrialisation.
Indonesia’s overall energy plans are set by the National Energy Policy (KEN – Kebijakan Energi Nasional) drawn up by the National Energy Council (DEN – Dewan Energi Nasional) In September 2025 President Prabowo Subianto signed into law a heavily revised KEN. This replaced the 2014 energy framework and reclassified nuclear energy from a “last resort” fallback option into a core, balancing pillar of the energy mix to reach net-zero by 2060.
In February, Indonesia announced the specific, accelerated target of reaching 7 GWe of nuclear capacity by 2034. and up to 44 GWe by 2060 to fulfil Indonesia’s net-zero emissions pledge.
The immediate implementation of this policy is set out in the 2025–2034 Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL – Rencana Usaha Penyediaan Tenaga Listrik), which targets adding 69.5 GWe of total generating capacity. The breakdown comprises 42.6 GWe (61%) from new and renewable energy, 10.3 GWe (15%) from energy storage, and 16.6 GWe (24%) from fossil fuel-based generation.
The renewable target includes 17.1 GWe of solar power, 11.7 GWe of hydro, 7.2 GWe of wind, 5.2 GWe of geothermal, 0.9 GWe of bioenergy, and 0.5 GWe of nuclear power. The 0.5 GWe (500 MWe) nuclear target schedules the construction of Indonesia’s first two 250 MWe commercial reactors -planned for Sumatra and Kalimantan – to connect to the grid by 2033/2034. This represents a critical pilot phase required to prove the technology before scaling up to KEN’s 7 GWe target by 2034.
Indonesia is evaluating five distinct nuclear technology proposals as it narrows down options for its first commercial plant. Because the country’s archipelagic geography and fragmented power grids make traditional reactors impractical, the Ministry of Energy & Mineral Resources and BRIN are heavily prioritising small modular reactors (SMRs), floating nuclear options, and next-generation designs.
The primary international proposals and technologies currently under review include:
- US & Japan – light-water SMRs. Feasibility studies have been undertaken up for a 70 MWe SMR supported by the US State Department’s Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST) framework – an energy security assistance programme with Japan (and recently South Korea) participating as contributing partners. The framework is designed to provide candidate nations with the technical, regulatory, and legal foundation required to operate SMRs with the aim of excluding Russian or Chinese competition. As yet the US and its partners have no operating SMR to use as reference.
- Russia (Rosatom) – floating nuclear power plants (FNPP). With the Akademik Lomonosov as an operating reference plant since 2020 and others already under construction in Russia, these are being seriously evaluated to supply stable base-load power to remote eastern islands and coastal industrial clusters. The 5th meeting of the Joint Rosatom-BRIN Working Group on training personnel for the Indonesian nuclear industry was held in Jakarta in late September.
- China & Domestic R&D – high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs). BRIN is leveraging a partnership with China national Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) to advance research on an experimental Pebble Bed HTGR design. Indonesia aims to use HTGR technology for high-temperature heat in industrial manufacturing alongside electricity. China operates the world’s first commercial HTGR SMR – the Shidaowan HTR-PM located in Shandong Province, which entered full commercial operation in December 2023.
- Canada & South Korea – commercial SMR frameworks. Canada and South Korea are aggressively pitching proposals to Indonesia because they are currently building their first “first-of-a-kind” (FOAK) commercial fleets domestically, aiming to use Indonesia as a primary export market for their newly licensed designs. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) signed a formal agreement with an Indonesian state utility subsidiary to evaluate its i-SMR (Innovative Small Modular Reactor) and Canada is offering the BWRX-300 under construction in Darlington.
- ThorCon Power (US/Singapore) – a thorium molten salt reactor (TMSR). This is a private proposal for the Thorcon 500 (a 500 MW plant using two 250 MW molten salt reactor modules). Indonesia’s nuclear regulator approved its site evaluation plan for Kelasa Island (Bangka Belitung) in 2025. However, the reactor is in the pre-construction phase and faces both technical and political scrutiny.
