The development of electric vehicles must be part of the energy transition and transformation strategy toward cleaner energy use, carbon neutrality and national energy sustainability.
By
NUGROHO ADI SASONGKO
·6 minutes read
Kompas
Heryunanto
Greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector have contributed greatly to global warming, which causes climate change more broadly. Coming to terms with nature and taking part in climate change mitigation, Indonesia is looking for a significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector by shifting vehicle propulsion from fossil fuels to biofuel and electricity.
Let us focus on the aspects of the green transportation program and electric vehicles. Challenges are imminent in the efforts to accelerate the implementation of electric vehicle policies, given that more than 60 percent of power plants in Indonesia are coal-based with the national electricity emission factor being above 780 grams of CO2 equivalent for every kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity generated.
Latent power hazards
Coal currently dominates the primary energy mix for electricity, and based on business as usual (BAU) projections – without any serious intervention from the government – this condition will not change in the next 30 years, until 2050.
Of course, this would go against the expectations of the extent of carbon reduction as outlined in the government’s net-zero emissions target. From 2016 to 2017, I researched green transportation policies in Japan and how they compared to those of Indonesia in collaboration with the Institute of Energy Economics Japan (IEEJ), the number one energy think-tank in Asia.
The result, as expected, confirmed Japan’s much better emissions reduction strategy. The low emissions factor of the electricity sector has given Japan leverage in promoting electric vehicles. Carbon dioxide emissions from combustion in power plants release hazardous particles, including sulfur and NOx, carried in dust. These particles can cause acid rain, respiratory issues in humans and even genetic changes in living things if they exceed the standard limit. One of the biggest challenges in electric vehicle component engineering lies in the energy charging and releasing technology of the battery. The rechargeable battery consists of a number of electrochemical cells, such as a cathode, anode and electrolyte.
Raw battery materials are available in abundance in Indonesia, especially nickel. Based on 2019 data from the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry and 2020 data from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Indonesia has 72 million tons of nickel ore, or about 52 percent of the world\'s total nickel reserves of around 139 million tons.
The government, through a consortium of state-owned enterprises, consisting of Mind ID, Antam, PLN and Pertamina, has established Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC) to ensure that substantial added economic value is obtained for the nation along the involved operational chain, starting from nickel mining (as one of the main raw materials for batteries) and continuing to smelting, manufacturing and electric vehicle systems. National nickel resources are being used on a large scale to meet the needs of local and global markets.
Environmental impacts
Electric vehicle manufacturing comes along with at least four negative impacts, namely hazardous and toxic substances (B3), energy overconsumption throughout the production process, an enormous water footprint and ecological damage. These impacts, as it turn out, are quite hazardous to humans and the environment and sit apart from greenhouse gas emissions.
Electric vehicles, like other manufactured products, require a wide range of raw materials along their production chain. If not managed properly, the processing of these materials can pose threats to the environment and human health. Studies I have conducted this year show that global exploitation of lithium and nickel increases the rate of B3 exposure for vegetation, animals and humans. The studies on this environmental load were carried out by using the lifecycle impact assessment (LCIA) method.
These B3 substances accumulate in fresh water, salt water, the soil, the air and the human body and can cause problems in all. A number of substances, such as heavy metals, arsenic, sodium dichromate and hydrogen fluoride, which are commonly generated from mining activities, fossil fuel-based power plants and electronics such as batteries, have very specific impacts on ecosystems. The characterization of B3 substances in LCIA uses the reference unit of 1,4-dichlorobenzene (1,4-DB) or para- dichlorobenzene (p-DCB) equivalent, which is an organic compound with the formula C6H4Cl2.
Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo
The Transjakarta Electric Bus enters the Blok M terminal, Jakarta, Friday (17/9/2021). For the next three months, PT Transportation Jakarta invites the public to try the Transjakarta X Higer Subscriber Electric Bus with the route Blok M - DKI Jakarta City Hall (EV1). In the future, all Transjakarta conventional fleets will gradually switch to using electric vehicles.
This compound is less soluble in water and is not easily broken down by organisms. If it contaminates food, this compound will accumulate in the fat tissue of humans. The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) say that p-DCB causes cancer and genetic mutations.
The production process of batteries and electric vehicles through extraction, purification and manufacturing entails enormous consumption of energy and clean water. The exploitation of these natural resources can also cause damage to the ecosystem, as hazardous as tailings waste to the environment. In addition, much remains unknown about the long-term impact of the battery waste recycling process.
Recommended policy
We certainly hope that the green transportation policy on electric vehicles can provide environmental benefits through greenhouse gas emissions mitigation.
The transportation sector emission mitigation strategy must be developed through the use of new and renewable energy in order to effect a positive impact on the green mobility campaign. Indonesia must increase the rate of renewables use in the national energy mix by realizing green projects to replace fossil fuel-fired power plants.
At the least, the installed capacity (GW) of power generation – the 80 TWh of electricity produced from coal-based power plants – must be replaced with energy sources of low greenhouse gas emission intensity, such as biomass, which has an emission factor of around 22.33 g CO2eq/kWh, to achieve an emission reduction ratio comparable to that of Japan for the 2016 baseline. The Cofiring initiatives carried out recently by PLN are quite good and need to be improved.
All other renewable energy sources, such as solar power, hydropower, wind power and geothermal, must be developed optimally into the mix of the national power generation system. Even nuclear power, apart from its controversies, deserves attention.
At the very least, we must work together as much as possible to reduce power generation emissions in aggregate to below 700 CO2eq/kWh, as recommended by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IEA) in 2016 to obtain net-CO2 savings from electric vehicles.
ARSIP PRIBADI
Nugroho Adi Sasongko
The development of electric vehicles must be part of the energy transition and transformation strategy toward cleaner energy use, carbon neutrality and national energy sustainability. This article seeks to help shed light on the policies and their consequences to encourage the more comprehensive and careful studies necessary to minimize the risk of environmental disasters.
Nugroho Adi Sasongko, BRIN Associate Engineer, Lecturer on Energy Security at the Indonesian Defense University, Practitioner of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
