After nearly a year of operation, the Indonesia-Aotearoa New Zealand Geothermal Energy Program (PINZ) attended the worldwide scale geothermal conference and seminar the 2025 New Zealand Geothermal Week (NZGW) held in Rotorua, New Zealand on 28 July – 2 August 2025. The event, held in Rotorua, New Zealand, from July 28 to August 2, brought together experts, industry leaders, academics, and indigenous communities to share knowledge and explore opportunities for advancing geothermal energy.
At this vibrant forum, PINZ and Indonesian government delegates shared Indonesia’s geothermal journey and the long-standing collaboration between the two countries. They also explored further opportunities with New Zealand and engaged with industry leaders on promoting sustainable and inclusive geothermal practices.
One of the highlights in this participation was the insightful presentation from Prof. Eniya Listiani Dewi, Director General of New Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation of the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources at the NZGA Winter Seminar session. Prof. Eniya reflected on more than five decades of cooperation between Indonesia and New Zealand in geothermal development, emphasizing Indonesia’s firm commitment to unlocking its enormous geothermal resources to support clean, sustainable energy goals. She also extended a warm invitation to the global geothermal community to participate in upcoming Indonesian Geothermal Association (INAGA) events — a call that signals Indonesia’s eagerness to deepen international collaboration.
Presentation from Prof. Eniya Listiani Dewi, Director General of New Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation of the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources at the NZGA Winter Seminar session (Photo: PINZ).
Following this, PINZ delivered a presentation underscoring the unique two-way partnership between New Zealand and Indonesia. It highlighted how programmes implemented under the partnership demonstrated the value of two-way learning, with New Zealand gaining insights from Indonesia’s scale and diversity of resources, and how the collaboration is now continued through PINZ that provides policy and regulatory support, technical support, and capacity building.
PINZ presentation session at the NZGA Winter Session (Photo: PINZ).
The audience showed keen interest in the collaborative progress and the broader geothermal community’s global interactions. The presentations showcased how the partnership has helped spark a broader commercial geothermal industry in New Zealand, not only with Indonesia but also with other countries. Discussions also explored new opportunities to leverage geothermal sector developments from Indonesia, particularly in areas like low-temperature geothermal, slimhole drilling, and the direct use of geothermal energy.
During the NZGW, especially during the presentation, PINZ met with geothermal stakeholders from New Zealand industry, developers, consultants, university students, and industry players from various countries. PINZ also met with Māori contingent which resulted in powerful exchange of ideas about sustainable management of geothermal fields in New Zealand.
Following the presentation from the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, in a heartfelt exchange, PINZ Strategic Advisor Pak Ahmad Yuniarto met with the Māori Contingent to discuss the social inclusion challenges and opportunities in both Indonesia and New Zealand (Photo: PINZ).
Beyond the conference, the PINZ team visited Kawerau’s geothermal-powered paper mill, gaining practical lessons in sustainable resource management. The visit invited the group to explore small-scale geothermal industry, a development strategy that could open ideas for both PINZ programme implementation and Indonesia to complement the country’s existing focus on large-scale development.
The 2025 NZGW was more than just a conference—it served as a vibrant platform for two-way learning, where we showcased Indonesia’s remarkable geothermal journey and the successes of the Indonesia-New Zealand partnership, while also receiving valuable insights into world-class best practices for advancing sustainable and inclusive geothermal development.
