TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The United States Embassy in Jakarta on Monday, June 6, reported that the U.S. Department of Commerce lead a delegation of U.S. business representatives to explore new opportunities and collaboration in the Indonesian market as part of the Clean EDGE Asia Business Development Mission.

It marks the first U.S. government trade mission to the Asia region following May’s historic signing of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) - which consists of the US, Indonesia, and 12 other partners - by President Biden, President Jokowi, and other leaders in the region.

The Clean EDGE Asia Business Development Mission aims to support and accelerate Asia’s clean energy transition by harnessing the expertise and resources of the U.S. renewable energy companies involved in the development of solar, wind, biomass, and other forms of renewable energy to meet with Indonesian energy sector partners and government decision-makers.

The U.S. delegation includes 12 industry-leading organizations across the renewable energy and fuels, energy storage, hydrogen, smart grid, nuclear, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) sub-sectors: Bechtel (Texas), Bloom Energy (California), Cheniere Energy (Texas), Ecoplexus (California), FuelCell Energy (California), Itron (Washington), Marquis Energy Global (Illinois), NuScale Power (Oregon), Sempra Energy (California), U.S. Grains Council (Washington, D.C.), UPC Renewables (Florida), and Westinghouse Electric Company (Pennsylvania). Collectively the companies have the potential to dramatically increase foreign investment in Indonesia’s power sector.

“The Clean EDGE Asia mission provides a timely opportunity to roll up our sleeves and discuss the expanding trade partnership between the United States and Indonesia under the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity [IPEF],” said the U.S. Embassy Spokesperson Michael Quinlan.

To deepen U.S. economic engagement in the region, IPEF’s “Clean Economy” pillar seeks first-of-their-kind, high-standard commitments on clean energy, decarbonization, and infrastructure, and pursues ambitious targets in tackling the climate crisis. IPEF’s “Connected Economy” pillar will develop high-standard rules of the road in the digital economy, as well as seek strong labor and environment standards and corporate accountability provisions that promote a race to the top through trade.

The United States is now the fourth-largest foreign investor in Indonesia, rising four spots from last year. Two-way trade in goods between the two countries increased last year by over 30 percent to $36 billion.

Meanwhile, the US is Indonesia’s second-largest export market which includes a high proportion of value-added products in the field of textiles and footwear (26.6%), agricultural goods (20.3%), and machinery and mechanical appliances (14.7%). The United States has a low weighted mean tariff rate – of 1.52% in 2020. Half of industrial (non-agricultural) goods enter the United States duty-free.

US EMBASSY IN JAKARTA

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