Locally Made ‘Red and White’ Electric Buses for G20 Summit

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The Red and White Electric Bus is being assembled at the PT INKA workshop, Madiun, East Java on Thursday (8/9/2022).

The 1964 Tokyo Olympics were the stage for Japan's proud product, the Shinkansen bullet train. Now, it is the Group of Twenty (G20) Summit in Bali’s turn to serve as the stage for the locally made Red and White electric buses.

The Red and White electric bus is the second generation of the electric bus developed by PT IUGMndustri Kereta Api (Inka). This time, the production is carried out in cooperation with a number of universities, namely the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) Surabaya, East Java; the Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) Denpasar, Bali; Airlangga University (Unair) Surabaya; Gadjah Mada University (UGM) Yogyakarta; and Diponegoro University (Undip) Semarang, Central Java.

The bus with a capacity of 19 people will be used for the transportation of delegates at the G20 Summit in Bali, November 2022. As of 26 Oct., PT Inka has delivered 11 buses out of a total of 30 buses ordered. The rest will be delivered in early November.

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The bustle that accompanied pursuance of the bus-completion target was seen in Building L, PT Inka’s complex, Madiun, East Java, on Thursday (8/9/2022). At first glance, the physical appearance of a bus measuring 8 meters long is no different from that of an ordinary bus.

However, if you look closely, the bus does not have the combustion system, large cylinder head and block that usually function as the "heart" of a conventional bus.

All of these components were replaced with a series of batteries and motors. As a result, the fuel oil--indicator panel on the dashboard is exchanged for an indicator of battery, temperature and mileage.

The hole of the fuel tank is also replaced with a charging socket. There is no puff of combustion smoke and no sound of engine.

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One of the Red and White buses made by PT INKA was used to take the Kompas team around the PT INKA production area in Madiun, East Java on Thursday (8/9/2022).

With a 150-kWh battery, this vehicle can cover a distance of 160 kilometers. "We have tested this bus to climb the incline to Sarangan [Magetan], and it was successful," said PT Inka’s operations director I Gede Agus Prayatna proudly.

Component

Based on PT Inka's calculations, the local component level (TKDN) for the Red and White buses exceeded 65 percent.

The project manager of PT Inka, Edi Winarno, said the bus used a locally made battery named ABC. Parts of the bus body and the driving motor are also domestically produced. However, some components that have not been produced in Indonesia must be imported.

Unlike a conventional bus, the Merah Putih bus does not use a rolling chassis because the weight should not exceed 8 tonnes.

The production of Red and White buses is different from conventional buses. Unlike a conventional bus, the Merah Putih bus does not use a rolling chassis because the weight should not exceed 8 tonnes.

“We apply the same method as in the manufacturing of a train. We built the body and interior components first while waiting for the imported components to arrive. After the body and interior are completed, then we install the drive system," said Edi.

Muhammad Nur Yuniarto, a lecturer in Mechanical Engineering, the School of Industrial Technology and System Engineering, ITS Surabaya, who was involved in making the Red and White electric buses, said, "It is time for Indonesia to become a producer, not just a user." Some people may be a little nervous when they hear it, but is great work not born of anxiety that is taken seriously?

According to him, Indonesia must prepare itself to become an automotive producer, not just a buyer. It does not matter if the research and production costs are much higher than importing readymade components.

“In the manufacture of electric vehicles, battery and motor components take up almost 50 percent of the TKDN level. PT Inka actually has many options, such as importing components or doing their own research. However, due to limited time and high costs, collaboration with universities is a necessity," said Nur.

In the process, the manufacture of the Red and White electric bus is dependent upon its connection with universities and ITS alumni, who run start-up companies in Keputih, Surabaya. They are ex-researchers and developers of the Gesits electric motorcycle, whose prototypes have been tested at a distance of 1,000 km, from Jakarta to Bali.

There are four start-ups in the location, namely Braja Elektrik Motor, which produces electric motors; Ultima Design Otomotif, which handles batteries; Solusi Produk Indonesia (Spin), which is engaged in marketing electric vehicles; and Wiksa Daya Pratama, which makes battery-swap stations.

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The Red and White Electric Bus is being assembled at the PT INKA workshop in Madiun, East Java on Thursday (08/09/2022).

It was from there that the battery components and electric motors for the Merah Putih bus were designed and assembled. Other collaborations were carried out to develop a battery-management system and engineering design (by UGM and ITS), electric motors and controllers (UGM, ITS and Unair), data and integration systems (ITS), design (ISI Denpasar), complete air management with Hepa filters (ITS and Unair) as well as the validation process (by Undip).

Nur hoped that there would be more development and research cooperation between universities and industry on the production of local components so that production costs could be reduced.

"Don't let it happen, when electric vehicles in Indonesia are progressing well, that only big industries from abroad are in charge. The locals must have more roles," said Nur.

According to him, the role of universities in the field of research and innovation is very important so that products will have a good quality and not be inferior to foreign products.

In line with Nur, the president director of PT Inka, Budi Noviantoro, hoped that a number of components could be produced in Indonesia to increase the local-component level. According to him, the role of universities in the field of research and innovation is very important so that products will have a good quality and not be inferior to foreign products.

Budi said that Pakistan had explored the possibility of purchasing 14,000 electric buses produced by PT Inka. In addition, the Mexican ambassador has also called to buy the company’s electric cars.

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.