ExCo63, Bali, Indonesia

We were very pleased to revisit Indonesia following the recent hosting of our Summer School in Bandung by the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) in December 2022. ITB, a member organisation of IEAGHG, were also the gracious hosts of our 63rd Executive Committee (ExCo63) meeting at Nusa Dua on the beautiful Indonesian island of Bali. With some 27 IEAGHG delegates attending in person and around 30 online, including three prospective new members, the meeting was well attended. 

It was a busy meeting with four completed studies being presented along with results from two expert IEAGHG network meetings, together with feedback from several other activities that IEAGHG organised or in which IEAGHG was closely engaged such as with UNFCCC (COP27 events and Article 6) and with IMO. Five new technical studies were discussed and approved by members, and updates were provided on forthcoming workshops and conferences (PCCC7 and GHGT-17).

For the in-person attendees, there was a field trip on the third day. Two CO₂ sources were visited, the first one relating to electricity generation and the second a natural source. In addition, we were treated to some very interesting geology.The first visit took in an LNG receiving terminal at Benoa, operated by PT Pelindo Energi Logistik, where natural gas is used to feed a gas-fired power facility. LNG from Indonesia’s large Bontang liquefaction plant in Kalimantan is shuttled to Benoa by ship two or three times a week. The LNG carrier takes 2-3 days to travel from Kalimantan to Bali, with each delivery transporting 23,000 m3 LNG. The LNG is unloaded into a floating storage unit at the receiving terminal’s dockside, where it is transferred to a floating regasification unit. Gas processed by the floating regasification unit is then piped 3.7 km to a 200 MW reciprocating engine-based power plant in Pesanggaran, owned by PLN, the state electricity firm. The engine power plant, manufactured by the Finnish company, Wärtsilä, is quite flexible, having been designed to operate on either regasified LNG, light fuel oil, or heavy fuel oil. Operating since 2016, the power plant provides around one-third of Bali’s needs, with a 200 MW coal-fired unit and a 200 MW interconnector from Java to Bali making up the remainder. Perhaps, in time, ships may be used to transport the CO₂ generated from the power plant to a suitably secure storage location!The second CO₂ source was natural rather than anthropogenic. The Batur volcano, one of Indonesia’s many active volcanoes, provided a very scenic lunch location viewed from Kintamani perched on the edge of the larger outer caldera. Recent (1960s) lava flows from the Batur volcanic cone are visible and are unvegetated. Sulphuric emissions during recent eruptions have caused fish to die in the caldera lake to the southeast. Further to the southeast we also glimpsed views of the imposing cone-shaped volcano, Mount Agung, the highest point of Bali at over 3,000 m.Further geological features were explored at the Gunung Kawi Temple, also known as the Valley of the Balinese Kings, an 11th century temple complex carved into Quaternary aged volcaniclastic outcrops on either side of the Pakerisan River.Overall, the ExCo meeting was productive and delegates were treated to an interesting and enlightening field trip. Our thanks go to Professor Wawan Gunawan, Dr Rachmat Sule, and colleagues at ITB!