Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (L) and South African Minister for Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel (middle) (Photo: Ạntara) Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto saidon September 23 that he explored opportunities for cooperation with SouthAfrica while meeting with Minister for Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel at the G20 Trade, Investment, and IndustryMinisterial Meeting.
The two ministers discussed various aspects ofpotential cooperation, including mineral and coal, as well as efforts to cutdependence on fossil fuels according to the global agreement to reduce exhaustemissions and the impact of climate change.
During the meeting, Hartarto remarked that thetransition to low-carbon energy is an important aspect to achieve climateresilience that supports the environment and creates more job opportunities.
He stated that Indonesia's energy transitionefforts to become environmentally friendly were made through various nationalpolicies, such as the use of electric-based vehicles by supporting thedevelopment of electric vehicle batteries using the country's raw materials,such as nickel.
In addition, Indonesia, through its cooperationwith the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is preparing strategic steps for phasingdown the use of coal-based power plants in terms of funding in line with theenergy transition mechanism.
Patel, for his part, said the two countrieshave experience in managing the mining industry and processing raw materials,such as bauxite, copper, and aluminum.
Apart from discussing energy and miningcooperation, the discussion also focused on potential for cooperationin the halal and automotive industry and its components.
In the January-July period, two-way trade hit 2.06 billionUSD, up 46.92% from the same period last year./.
