JAKARTA – Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said Indonesia’s Carbon Capture Storage (CCS) sector is now attracting global investors, including BP and Exxon.

“Several companies such as BP, Exxon, and others will invest in Indonesia. For CCS, the value is around USD 15 billion,” Airlangga said in a keynote speech delivered at the Top CEO Indonesia Awards 2025 on Thursday, 4 December.

At the event, held by IDNFinancials at The Langham Jakarta, Airlangga said Indonesia now has CO₂ storage capacity of up to 600 gigatonnes.

“That is the largest in Asia, meaning we can actually absorb CO₂ from Australia, Japan, and Korea,” Airlangga said.

With such promising potential, Indonesia needs to establish internationally aligned carbon-trading protocols.

On the other hand, Airlangga said the Indonesian government continues to encourage the Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI) to build a more transparent carbon market, supported by proportionate market makers to facilitate price formation.

“Otherwise, the disparity between prices in Indonesia and international prices will be too wide,” Airlangga explained.

Airlangga also urged leaders in the private sector, especially the recipients of the Top CEO Awards 2025, to continue promoting investment and creating much-needed jobs.

Previously, Airlangga emphasised that Indonesia’s economic prospects would be more promising in 2026. “The upside risk potential is higher than the downside risk,” he said, noting that Indonesia’s 2026 economic growth baseline is set at 5.4%.

“There is not much bad news in the coming years,” Airlangga added, highlighting similar views expressed by the World Bank and IMF during the G20 meeting in South Africa. (KR/ZH)