Of all the agreements at the Saudi-Indonesian summit, the renewable energy partnership drew the most attention. Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, one of the world’s largest power and water companies, signed preliminary agreements with the sovereign wealth fund Danantara Indonesia and with Pertamina to explore projects that could reach USD 10 billion in value.
Why energy in particular?
Because the two sides stand at a rare meeting point. Indonesia is an archipelago of thousands of islands facing a chronic challenge in delivering reliable, affordable electricity to scattered regions, with demand rising on the back of population growth and industrial expansion.
Saudi Arabia, through companies like ACWA Power, has accumulated two decades of operating experience in developing power and water projects under the independent producer model, and in structuring their financing and running them over long concessions. That experience is what Indonesia needs, not capital alone.
When real demand meets proven experience and available finance, the partnership becomes economically sound rather than merely political. That is what gives energy projects a higher chance of surviving than others.
An effect that goes beyond electricity
A billion-dollar energy project does not only employ engineers. A whole ecosystem forms around it: construction contractors, equipment suppliers, transport and logistics firms, and operation and maintenance services that run for twenty years or more after commissioning.
This is where the opportunity many businesspeople overlook lies. Major projects are awarded to major companies, but those companies buy and subcontract on a wide scale. A mid-sized company that places itself in the supply chain of a large project may earn more from subcontracting than from smaller direct contracts.
Renewable energy also opens a door onto adjacent sectors: energy storage, green hydrogen, water desalination, and industrial consumption efficiency. Each of these is a market in its own right.
Vision 2030 and the green transition
This partnership fits a wider Saudi direction: turning domestic energy expertise into service exports and outbound investment. Rather than exporting oil alone, the Kingdom exports the capability to build and operate energy projects.
That shift creates openings for Saudi companies in fields that were not export businesses before: engineering consultancy, project management, technical training, and post-commissioning services.
What should be watched?
The announced agreements are preliminary by nature: they open the door to study, not to construction. The real indicator of their seriousness is their conversion into defined projects with sites, capacities and schedules, then financial close, then the start of construction.
For anyone who wants to be part of the supply chain, the right time to introduce yourself is during the study and development phase, not after contracts are awarded.
Working in energy or supporting services? Get in touch with the Saudi-Indonesian Business Council to put your company on the opportunity map.