Indonesia Geothermal Drilling History: What We Can Learn from It?

Abstract

Indonesia is one of the countries that has the largest geothermal energy potential in the world that can be managed to achieve energy security targets in the future. The first recorded geothermal energy discussion in Indonesia was during the Dutch colonial rule, in 1918, by J.Z. van Dijk, which most likely lead to the geothermal exploration project in Kamojang. In the period of 1926-1928, five wells were drilled in Kamojang Crater, West Java, which one of those wells still produces dry steam with a temperature of 140°C until now. Despite the long history of geothermal drilling in Indonesia, which almost reach 100 years, there is no clear indication that shows Indonesia geothermal drilling industry has been established in terms of technology, innovation, and capability. Several indicators that could be used are the widely distributed drilling cost, the absence of integrated drilling database, the absence of personnel certification and the absence of national drilling standard and code for geothermal. This study aims to provide the big picture of geothermal drilling journey in Indonesia that might result one or two useful information for future improvement.