Indonesia and Japan Sign Five-Year Nuclear Pact as Jakarta Targets First Power in 2033

A Tokyo agreement puts Indonesia's nuclear plans on a timetable

Indonesia and Japan signed a five-year nuclear cooperation memorandum in Tokyo on March 15, 2026, as Jakarta pursues its goal of producing an initial 500 megawatts of nuclear electricity by 2033. The agreement brings Japanese technology, safety expertise and potential financing into a program that still needs a presidential regulation before formal technology bidding can begin.

Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia and Japanese Economy, Trade, and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa signed the memorandum on the sidelines of the Indo-Pacific Energy Security Ministerial and Business Forum. After decades of hesitation over commercial nuclear power, Indonesia is seeking another source of electricity alongside coal, which generates roughly 80 percent of its power.

The memorandum covers nuclear technology development with high safety standards. It also opens possible financing channels through the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance. Financial support remains subject to due diligence, meaning checks on a project's risks and viability, and the completion of project milestones.

Japan has called for competitive and transparent technology selection. Japanese companies could participate, but Indonesia is considering several suppliers and reactor designs. The agreement creates no legally binding obligations and can be extended for another five years.

As of March 28, 2026, the central question is how quickly Jakarta can turn international cooperation into an approved, financed and licensed power project. Its Nuclear Energy Program Implementation Organization, known as NEPIO, is awaiting formal establishment, while proposals range from American small modular reactors to Russian floating plants and reactors using thorium.

Energy security drives the partnership

Akazawa cited the Israel-Iran war and worldwide supply disruptions as reasons to strengthen cooperation between trusted partners. At the signing ceremony, the Japanese minister connected the agreement to the need for reliable energy during global crises.

Amidst today's global crises, it is important for us to beef up collaboration to maintain energy security.

Indonesia faces its own pressure to expand dependable electricity supplies. The country of 280 million people has reached an electrification rate of 99.8 percent, yet frequent blackouts continue. Electricity access measures whether people are connected to a supply; reliability concerns whether that supply stays available when they need it.

Per capita electricity consumption has nearly doubled since 2000, reaching approximately 10,100 kilowatt-hours in 2023. State utility PT PLN projected electricity consumption would reach 457 terawatt-hours by 2025. Kilowatt-hours measure electricity used, while terawatt-hours express the same measure on a much larger scale.

Coal is central to both Indonesian electricity generation and export revenues. Jakarta therefore faces two linked tasks: maintaining the energy supplies needed for economic growth and meeting its commitment to carbon neutrality by 2060. Nuclear power is being considered as part of that transition.

Japan brings strategic energy reserves and advanced nuclear infrastructure to the partnership, offering Indonesia a model for reducing dependence on imports. Cooperation also extends to critical mineral supply chains. Bahlil highlighted Indonesia's 43 percent share of global nickel reserves, alongside substantial deposits of bauxite, tin, copper and rare earth elements used in clean energy technologies.

The agreement consequently connects electricity security with industrial supply chains. Indonesia seeks reactor expertise and investment, while Japan has an interest in the minerals and manufacturing networks needed for energy technologies.

Why smaller reactors appeal to an island nation

Indonesia's immediate nuclear plans focus on small modular reactors, usually called SMRs. These typically generate 300 megawatts or less per reactor, compared with about 1,000 megawatts for a conventional large facility. Several smaller units can be combined at one power station.

Indonesia's geography makes that approach attractive. Connections between electricity grids on different islands remain limited, so a smaller reactor may better match the needs of an individual grid. Modular construction allows units to be manufactured in advance, transported and installed at a site, with the aim of shortening construction and reducing initial capital requirements.

The most advanced project is in West Kalimantan on Borneo. PLN Indonesia Power has partnered with Oregon-based NuScale Power to develop a facility with an electrical capacity of 462 megawatts using NuScale's VOYGR technology. Japanese engineering company JGC Corporation and a subsidiary of Fluor Corporation are also involved.

The proposed 462 megawatts would amount to 92.4 percent of Indonesia's initial 500 megawatt target, illustrating how large a role this single project could play. Its proposed capacity is about 38 megawatts below that national starting goal.

NuScale's design has already received approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, giving Indonesian authorities a regulatory reference point. The West Kalimantan project still depends on site licensing and construction proceeding on schedule if it is to contribute to the 2033 target.

The United States supports Indonesia through the State Department's Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology program, known as FIRST. Indonesia became its first beneficiary in 2019, establishing a framework for assistance with workforce development, regulatory arrangements and safety protocols.

Thorium proposals offer other routes

PT ThorCon Power Indonesia, a subsidiary of the U.S.-based company, has submitted licensing documents to Indonesia's Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency for a reactor planned for Kelasa Island in Central Bangka. The proposal is for a thorium molten salt reactor producing 500 megawatts of electricity, with construction potentially starting in 2027.

The term molten salt describes a design that uses salt in liquid form within the reactor system. Thorium is the material central to the proposed fuel approach. Indonesia is weighing this technology alongside the small modular reactor proposals involving other international suppliers.

ThorCon's plan also draws on shipyard construction methods and could make use of Indonesia's maritime manufacturing capabilities at PT PAL Indonesia. That would connect the nuclear project to an existing industrial sector rather than relying solely on construction at the eventual power station site.

Four Danish companies have separately signed a memorandum of understanding with state-owned Pupuk Kalimantan Timur and Pertamina New & Renewable Energy. Their proposal is for a thorium SMR facility in Bontang, East Kalimantan, potentially costing $4 billion.

The Bontang facility would target ammonia production for fertilizer. Its commercial model would therefore involve an industrial customer buying the output, rather than depending entirely on electricity sales through a utility. These proposals give Jakarta different choices in technology, construction methods and customers.

A presidential regulation holds the next decision

Indonesia's planned Nuclear Energy Program Implementation Organization is to be chaired directly by President Prabowo Subianto. It awaits a presidential regulation before it can formally take authority over reactor planning and development, leaving a gap in the dedicated oversight of the national implementation program.

Senda Hurmuzan Kanam, a senior Energy Ministry official, said technology bids cannot proceed until NEPIO is established. The regulation was reported to be awaiting only the president's signature. No date was given for that signature or the opening of bidding.

Indonesia already has a Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, which is handling ThorCon's licensing documents. The pending NEPIO concerns the organization of the national nuclear program, including planning and development. Those responsibilities sit alongside the technical licensing work required for individual projects.

Bahlil, the minister overseeing Indonesia's energy policy, described the government's position on choosing a reactor technology.

We are open to all technologies, but we have not made any decision yet.

Russia's Rosatom has continued to offer several options, including floating small modular reactors suited to Indonesia's maritime geography. It has also proposed larger VVER-1200 reactors that could help Indonesia meet nuclear capacity targets exceeding 7 gigawatts by 2040.

Chinese, South Korean and Canadian companies have approached Jakarta with proposals as well. Indonesia is consequently evaluating a broad field of technologies while waiting for the institutional arrangements needed to make binding decisions.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has conducted integrated nuclear infrastructure review missions to Indonesia and identified the country as being at the first milestone: readiness to make a knowledgeable commitment to nuclear power. Indonesia's safeguards agreement under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has been in force since 1980, and its Additional Protocol has been active since 1999. Together, they provide an international verification framework needed for technology transfers.

Japan's revival carries the lessons of Fukushima

Japan signed the Indonesian agreement four days after marking the fifteenth anniversary of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster. On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami triggered meltdowns in three reactors and forced 160,000 people to evacuate.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office following the previous administration, has pushed for faster reactor restarts and a larger role for nuclear power as a stable energy source. That policy reverses the plan to phase out nuclear power over a decade that followed the 2011 disaster.

Japan's nuclear recovery remains constrained. Of the 54 reactors it operated before Fukushima, only 15 are currently generating electricity, while 22 have entered decommissioning. Decommissioning means permanently closing a reactor and carrying out the work needed to dismantle it safely.

Safety upgrades required after 2013 have increased costs from an initial estimate of 1 trillion yen to more than 2.4 trillion yen, over 2.4 times the original estimate. Legal challenges also continue to delay restarts.

The government aims to obtain 20 percent of electricity from nuclear sources by 2040, moving the target from its previous deadline of 2030. Current nuclear electricity output is roughly 8.3 percent. Reaching 20 percent would require a share more than twice that level.

A separate measure attributed to the International Energy Agency puts atomic energy at approximately 40 percent of Japan's domestic production in 2024, the largest share in that national supply mix. Domestic energy production and electricity generation use different totals, so the 40 percent figure refers to a different measure from the 8.3 percent electricity share.

Communities near proposed restart sites continue to resist nuclear operations, while decommissioning work at Fukushima remains delayed until 2037 or later because of radiation concerns. Japan's experience therefore brings both engineering expertise and the continuing demands of safety upgrades, public acceptance and cleanup to its overseas partnerships.

Export ambitions and financing meet in Indonesia

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Toshiba and IHI are positioning themselves for international nuclear projects as Japanese domestic construction remains stalled. Overseas work offers a way to maintain engineering expertise and the viability of supply chains despite constraints at home.

The United States and Japan have recently coordinated roles for potential joint ventures involving Westinghouse technology. The Indonesian agreement fits within that wider cooperation, although Jakarta's technology selection remains open.

Indonesia's financing options involve several different institutions. Japanese export credit agencies could support projects under the bilateral memorandum, while the U.S. Trade and Development Agency has provided grants to PLN Indonesia Power for technical assistance on the West Kalimantan SMR project.

The U.S. Export-Import Bank has separately advanced financing letters worth up to $4.2 billion to support Japanese and South Korean nuclear operators. These arrangements show how nuclear supply chains across the Indo-Pacific can draw on companies and financial institutions from several countries.

Indonesia's long term planning documents envisage 35 to 54 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2060, a scale comparable to Japan's entire fleet before Fukushima. Indonesia's current total power generation capacity is 93 gigawatts. Measured against that present total, the planned nuclear capacity alone would equal about 38 to 58 percent.

That comparison shows the scale of investment under consideration. It also places the initial 500 megawatt goal in context: 500 megawatts equals 0.5 gigawatts, a small first step toward the much larger capacity envisaged for 2060.

The National Energy Council has identified 29 potential sites for nuclear facilities across the archipelago. Bangka Island, West Kalimantan and the Muria Peninsula are among the locations mentioned most frequently. Financing models may differ between sites, from utility electricity sales to the private industrial purchases envisaged in Bontang.

Southeast Asian plans create a regional race

Indonesia's regulatory preparation and progress on site selection position it as a likely first mover in Southeast Asian SMR deployment. The Philippines and Thailand have also set out ambitions for small modular reactors, though their preparation and site selection have not reached an equivalent stage.

The Philippines aims to obtain 1.2 gigawatts of nuclear capacity using American SMR technology by 2032. Thailand's draft power development plan envisages two SMR units of 300 megawatts each, a combined capacity of 600 megawatts.

Indonesia's target date of 2033 comes after the Philippine target, but the outcome will depend on each country's progress through regulation, financing and construction. If Indonesia brings commercial nuclear generation into operation on schedule, it could become the first ASEAN nation to do so.

Indonesia, Japan and the United States are developing a trilateral framework centered on the highest standards for nuclear safety, security and non-proliferation. Safety concerns preventing accidents; security concerns protecting facilities and materials; non-proliferation concerns keeping nuclear technology from being diverted toward weapons.

A conference in Jakarta from March 3 to 5, 2026, brought together officials from the three countries to discuss SMR regulatory frameworks, workforce development and stakeholder engagement. The cooperation forms part of the wider competition involving Russian and Chinese suppliers.

Indonesian public opinion has been relatively favorable toward nuclear energy. Surveys by the National Atomic Energy Agency showed support exceeding 70 percent from 2014 onward, attributed to recognition of the need for stable electricity. That contrasts with continuing resistance in Japanese communities near reactors proposed for restart.

The dates shaping the 2033 ambition

Indonesia's nuclear program combines agreements already signed with construction and generation targets still ahead. The five-year Japanese memorandum gives the countries a defined period for cooperation, with the option of another five years, while Jakarta's first electricity target extends to 2033.

• 1980: Indonesia's safeguards agreement under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty entered into force.
• 1999: Indonesia's Additional Protocol became active.
• 2019: Indonesia became the first beneficiary of the U.S. FIRST program.
• March 3 to 5, 2026: Indonesian, Japanese and American officials met in Jakarta to discuss SMR preparation.
• March 11, 2026: Japan marked 15 years since the Fukushima disaster.
• March 15, 2026: Bahlil and Akazawa signed the nuclear cooperation memorandum in Tokyo.
• 2027: Construction could begin on ThorCon's proposed Kelasa Island reactor.
• 2033: Indonesia targets its first 500 megawatts of nuclear generation.
• 2040: Larger reactor proposals could help meet Indonesian targets exceeding 7 gigawatts; Japan targets a 20 percent nuclear electricity share.
• 2060: Indonesia aims for carbon neutrality and envisages 35 to 54 gigawatts of nuclear capacity.

Jakarta's immediate task is to establish NEPIO so formal technology bidding can proceed. The West Kalimantan proposal remains the most tangible near term prospect, with NuScale's approved design providing a reference for regulators and Japanese participation connecting it to the new bilateral agreement.

Japan gains an opportunity to export safety expertise developed through its Fukushima recovery, maintain industrial capabilities and strengthen critical mineral supply chains. Indonesia gains another framework for assessing technologies and arranging support for a major change in its electricity system.

The 2033 goal depends on the practical steps that follow: choosing a technology, completing licensing, securing financing and building the plant. The Tokyo memorandum advances cooperation, while those decisions will determine when Indonesia's first commercial nuclear electricity reaches its grid.

Key Points

• Indonesia and Japan signed a five-year nuclear cooperation memorandum in Tokyo on March 15, 2026, with an option to extend it for another five years.
• Indonesia targets an initial 500 megawatts of nuclear electricity by 2033 and envisages 35 to 54 gigawatts by 2060.
• The proposed West Kalimantan facility would produce 462 megawatts using NuScale technology, with participation from JGC and a Fluor subsidiary.
• NEPIO, to be chaired by President Prabowo Subianto, awaits a presidential regulation before technology bidding can begin.
• Other options include ThorCon's 500 megawatt reactor on Kelasa Island, a proposed $4 billion Danish thorium facility in Bontang and Russian floating or larger reactors.
• Potential support includes Japanese export credit agencies, U.S. technical assistance and industrial customers buying plant output.
• Japan's nuclear revival continues alongside costly safety upgrades, legal challenges, local resistance and Fukushima decommissioning work.
• Indonesia has not selected a reactor technology, and the 2033 target depends on licensing, financing and construction.