Features of Indonesia’s Low-Carbon Development Strategy

The purpose of the article is to identify trends and features of the development of a low-carbon economy and climate control tools in Indonesia using methods of content analysis, quantitative and comparative assessment. Climate goals declared for the period up to 2030 and 2050 are analyzed and there has been a rise in climate ambitions, based largely on measures to decarbonise the land and forestry sector. The peculiarity of Indonesia's climate goals is that they are defined relative to a business-as-usual scenario, which assumes the current rate of growth in greenhouse gas emissions and are calculated subject to the provision of international financial assistance. The long-term strategy for low-carbon development until 2050 is considered and government priorities in the field of climate regulation are identified. While forced to maintain coal generation as its long-term energy backbone, Indonesia is seeking to pursue other avenues: introducing carbon pricing, incentivizing renewable energy, increasing production of electric vehicles, and developing and deploying carbon capture technology. By providing state support to priority areas, Indonesia actively takes advantage of the opportunities provided by international financial organizations to finance climate projects. It is concluded that the long-term low-carbon development strategy and associated climate goals in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and the time frame for achieving carbon neutrality are quite moderate, since they are based on a comparison with the business-as-usual scenario. With this approach to strategic planning, it will be possible to achieve the set goals by implementing measures only in the land and forestry sector, while the volume of greenhouse gas emissions in other sectors may not decrease, but increase in absolute terms. This approach is explained by national interests and the desire to preserve coal generation in the energy sector.