As of December 31, 2025, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR) of Indonesia reported that Indonesia's total photovoltaic (PV) solar energy capacity had reached a total installed capacity of 1.49 gigawatts (GW), or cumulative add that far since last yearly cumulative add; and in 2015 Java added about 546 megawatts (MW) of new solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity. There have been significant advances made regarding the growth of solar capacity mostly as a result of private sector investments; but utility-scale solar projects have not developed as planned by the State-Owned Utilities and without significant changes to the country's energy policy strategy, Indonesia is unlikely to achieve its stated goals for achieving energy independence through solar energy."
A Market Driven from the Rooftop Down
While Indonesia's solar energy boom in 2025 was not driven by large, centrally managed government installations, rather it has been propelled by the use of rooftop solar by commercial and industrial (C&I) users. C&I users represent the largest market for solar growth, and as large electricity users look to decarbonise their energy use and reduce their energy costs, more are turning to rooftop solar systems for their power supply. As noted by IESR Executive Director Fabby Tumiwa, the above-mentioned trends will likely continue into 2026 for two primary reasons: 1) a lack of activity coordinated by the national electricity company, PLN, related to utility-scale solar power procurement; and 2) the lack of residential rooftop solar system incentives after net metering was repealed.
As a result of this private sector increase, there has been a growth of renewable energy in Indonesia, with the country's share rising from 14.75% in 2024 to 15.75% in 2025. However, while growth in rooftop solar was significant for consumers, very little progress has been made on the original electricity supply's business plan (RUPTL), which had targets for renewable energy design and development. Moreover, 15.75% is also below the government's previously established revised target range of 17-19% for 2025, lower than their original target of 23%. According to Tumiwa, the increase was overwhelmingly driven by rooftop PV installed by end-users as opposed to the achievements towards achieving the targets outlined in PLN's RUPTL.
Policy Push and Sovereign Ambitions
The advancements made in solar energy are supported by met and unmet government mandates. The top-down commitment by President Prabowo Subianto to the energy independence of Indonesia (achieving this by 2025 or 2027) shows how dedicated the President is to this initiative by making energy independence and ensuring food and water security as part of the national agenda. In a major policy address, he declared, "Indonesia must be the world's pioneer of clean energy," and expressed optimism about reaching 100% renewable electricity generation "in 10 years or sooner".
Not only has the Government committed a significant amount of money to the advancement of renewable energy, but international governments have also pledged assistance. For example, the Government of Indonesia has committed to providing 402 trillion Rupiah ($24.8 billion) over the next five years to the energy security component of the state budget. Out of that budget amount, there is 37.5 trillion Rupiah committed specifically to support the advancement of renewable energy projects. The Indonesian government has received multiple sources of foreign assistance supporting domestic projects, including a $470 million results-based loan to PLN from the Asian Development Bank for the development of both wind and solar energy projects in Indonesia and the improvement of the Indonesian electrical grid system infrastructure.
In terms of future funding, the government recently announced an ambitious long-term plan to develop 100 GW of solar power, which includes 80 GW of funding for 1 MW mini-grids to electrify remote villages.
In the short term, the rooftop solar quota program for grid connection opened in January 2026 with a quota of 485 MW, with demand being strong enough for MEMR to request an additional 400 MW of allocation.
Conclusion
The Indonesian solar market is currently experiencing dynamic contradictions of its energy transition (eg, strong leadership ambition and budget support, strong bottom-up demand from commercial actors) versus the inability of existing institutions and infrastructure to scale up utility-sized projects successfully. Future success will require converting high-level target budgets into procurement efficiencies, a modernized grid, and clear regulations. Prabowo's call for the country to achieve energy independence will be an important measure of success for Indonesia's overall clean energy transition.
