Indonesia, S. Africa Plan Energy Cooperation

Indonesia, S. Africa plan energy cooperation

JAKARTA, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) — Developing alternative sources of energy will be one of the key areas of cooperation between South Africa and Indonesia following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two governments earlier this week.

Visiting South African Minister of Science and Technology Mosibudi Mangena, who was in Jakarta to sign the MOU on science and technology cooperation, said that research in this area was urgent because of economic and environmental issues.

“The price of oil is going up all the time, causing lots of hardship to all nations,” he was quoted Thursday by The Jakarta Post as saying. “Fossil fuels also cause pollution and contribute to global warming.”

“The days of using oil and other fossil fuels to power the economy are numbered,” he said.

The MOU also proposes scientific collaboration in biotechnology, the aerospace industry and in nuclear power development. The agreement will also facilitate an exchange of scientists between the two countries.

Indonesia’s State Minister for Research and Technology Kusmayanto Kadiman agreed that finding renewable sources of energy would be a focus of the cooperation between the two countries.

“Wind energy, sea wave energy, solar energy or hydrogen energy could be considered in a joint strategy in developing alternative energy,” Kadiman said.

He said Indonesia could provide technological assistance to South Africa in the development of biofuels, such as biodiesel or bioethanol.

The ministry has identified research in alternative and renewable energy as one of its six priority areas for scientific research and development expenditure, which accounted for roughly 0.05 percent of Indonesia’s GDP in 2001.

Mangena, who is trying to push up South Africa’s research and development expenditure from 0.81 percent of GDP to 1 percent by 2008, said that his country was focusing on developing hydrogen- powered fuel cell technologies as alternatives to fossil fuels.

He said that hydrogen would provide a clean source of energy as its byproducts consisted of only heat and water, as opposed to the harmful carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels.

However, he said that more research was needed before commercially usable hydrogen would be available.

He said that it was important for developing countries to conduct scientific studies since the research agendas of developed countries were at times irrelevant to poorer country’s needs.

“Our problems are similar … that’s why building a relationship with Indonesia will be very valuable,” he said.