Breaking Barriers to Low-Carbon Development in Indonesia : Deployment of Renewable Energy

The Indonesian government is incorporating Low-Carbon Development (LCD) into its National Medium-Term Development Plan 2020-2024. In the future, the energy sector will become the largest carbon emitter unless the government commits to dissolving barriers to renewable energy expansion. This research aims to examine the barriers that hinder the implementation of LCD in Indonesia and to analyze which barriers are most significant. The novelty of this study is in developing a mixed method approach. This approach is more effective in explaining the results that have not been completely revealed from previous studies. Barriers to LCD was decomposed into socio-cultural, economic, technology, and governance. This study indicates that among those four dimensions, technological and governance barriers have significant and direct effects on LCD, while socio-cultural and economic barriers have no significant effect in Indonesia. However, economic barriers can act as an intervening variable, facilitating the indirect effects of technological and governance barriers on renewable energy development. Resolving major issues, including sectoral ego among government institutions, lack of smart grid infrastructure, and limited numbers of skilled workers and investors in renewable energy projects, should be a top priority if LCD implementation is to succeed