President Prabowo Launches Massive $73 Billion Solar Push Targeting 100 GW in Aggressive Three-Year Energy Pivot

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — President Prabowo Subianto unleashed a staggering $73 billion clean energy offensive on Tuesday, committing Southeast Asia's largest economy to build 100 gigawatts of solar capacity in just three years to achieve complete national energy self-sufficiency.

The ambitious rollout commenced with the simultaneous activation of 14 utility-scale solar projects totaling 5.3 gigawatts across six provinces, signaling an aggressive state-backed shift toward renewable power.

Deploying 100 gigawatts of solar capacity represents one of the most capital-intensive renewable transitions in emerging markets, reshaping fiscal balances by cutting expensive diesel fuel consumption and reducing state electricity subsidies.

If executed on schedule, the initiative will sharply narrow Southeast Asia's largest economy's current account deficit by curbing reliance on imported crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) while opening massive project finance pipelines for global clean tech equipment suppliers and infrastructure funds.

Aggressive Three-Year Buildout Timeline

Speaking at the project's launch ceremony at the Gilimanuk Solar Site in Jembrana Regency, Bali, on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, Prabowo underscored that the aggressive execution target is non-negotiable.

"We will build 100 gigawatts. We are not playing around; our target is 100 gigawatts in three years," Prabowo declared during the commissioning ceremony on Tuesday. "With 100 gigawatts, we will truly become a nation that stands on our own two feet, unafraid of any geopolitical or economic developments anywhere in the world."

The opening phase deploys 5.3 GW across key population and industrial centers, including the provinces of West Java, Central Java, East Java, Bali, the Bangka Belitung Islands, and the Riau Islands.

Key installations commissioned during the first tranche include the Tembesi and Pulau Sembur solar farms in Riau Islands, the Pulau Rengit site in Bangka Belitung, major reservoir floating arrays across West Java including Saguling, Purwakarta, Jatiluhur, Cirata, and Jatigede, as well as the Gajah Mungkur reservoir site in Central Java and multiple sites across East Java and Bali.

Trillion-Rupiah Fiscal Savings and Employment Multipliers

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia delivered the financial blueprint for the program, framing the mega-initiative as both a fiscal stabilizer and a macroeconomic growth driver.

"The total investment for the 100-gigawatt program stands at approximately $73 billion, or over Rp 1,140 trillion," Lahadalia stated during his official project presentation in Bali on Tuesday. "This entire undertaking allows us to achieve annual state budget subsidy efficiencies of Rp 73.9 trillion ($4.65 billion) while creating roughly 5.52 million jobs."

The energy ministry coordinated across multiple government entities, security forces, and state institutions to secure utility land rights and accelerate grid interconnections.

Halting Hydrocarbon and LPG Imports

Prabowo reinforced that the solar expansion represents the core pillar of an all-of-the-above domestic energy roadmap designed to terminate foreign fuel dependency.

The administration plans to integrate utility solar with the archipelago's deep geothermal baseload resources, newly discovered natural gas fields, and improved upstream crude oil lifting recovery.

"With our geothermal resources, our discovered gas fields, and upstream oil lifting that must continue to rise, we should not import a single barrel of crude oil or a single canister of LPG moving forward," Prabowo affirmed to officials on Tuesday.

The head of state expressed strong conviction that coordinated inter-agency execution could enable Southeast Asia's biggest economy to achieve full energy sovereignty even ahead of the 36-month deadline.