ADB pledges to double loan commitments to Indonesia
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has pledged to double loan commitments to Indonesia this year to facilitate economic recovery in one of its biggest client countries.
Part of Jakarta capital city of Indonesia (Photo: Reuters)
Jakarta (VNA) – The AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB) has pledged to double loan commitments to Indonesiathis year to facilitate economic recovery in one of its biggest clientcountries.
ADB Country Director Winfried F. Wicklein said on August 19that the bank usually commits 1 billion USD to 2 billion USD each year forIndonesia, mostly in infrastructure projects, particularly those related toenergy.
However, in the face of COVID-19, ADB is stepping up insupport and will more than double it this year, he said during a webinar heldby state-owned geothermal energy company PT Geo Dipa Energi and infrastructurefinancing guarantee agency PT Penjaminan Infrastruktur Indonesia.
He also called on the Indonesian government to invest inrenewable energy as part of the country’s economic recovery plans. ADB isparticularly supportive of geothermal power, which the Manila-based lenderconsiders ideal to spur even growth across the archipelago.
ADB, a self-described leading financier of geothermalprojects in Indonesia, recently approved 300 million USD to expand geothermalpower plants in Dieng of Central Java province and Patuha of West Java province.
ADB adds to a list of organisations, including theParis-based International Energy Agency (IEA) and Jakarta-based Institute forEssential Services Reform (IESR), that have explicitly called for theIndonesian government to invest in a green economic recovery.
Indonesia, which holds the world’s largest known geothermalreserves, only harnessed 8.9 percent of its total 23.9 gigawatts of geothermalpotential last year, according to official data./.
Bank Indonesia (BI) reported on August 18 that the balance of payments (BoP) of the country had a surplus of 9.2 billion USD in the second quarter of 2020.
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The forum featured two in-depth discussion sessions, engaging representatives from governments, think tanks, and businesses from both ASEAN and China, on how to forge closer ties for a common future.
Part of Jakarta capital city of Indonesia (Photo: Reuters) 
