Low-Carbon Cold Chains: Unlocking Indonesia’s Sustainable Fisheries Potential

Indonesia’s fisheries sector is vital for economic growth, coastal livelihoods, and food security. Yet its full value is often limited by what happens after harvest: whether the catch can be cooled quickly, powered reliably, and preserved with low-carbon energy.

For premium seafood such as tuna and shrimp, cold chain access can determine whether a product reaches export-grade value or falls to commodity prices. This is where low-carbon cold chains can help Indonesia strengthen sustainable fisheries, reduce emissions, and improve local value capture.

These insights are based on su-re.co’s preliminary findings on Technology Gaps for Sustainable Fisheries in Indonesia, developed in partnership with GIZ and presented during the Indonesia Fisheries Decarbonisation Workshop held by IPNLF and GIZ in Jakarta on 19–20 May 2026.

Why Do Fisheries Matter in Indonesia?

Fisheries are essential to Indonesia because they support economic growth, livelihoods, and food security.

In 2024, Indonesia’s fisheries sector contributed approximately 2.54% of national GDP, reaching around Rp 407 trillion. The wider agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sector represented about 12.6% of Indonesia’s GDP, with fisheries accounting for roughly one-fifth of that sector.

Indonesia is also the world’s second-largest fish producer after China, making it a major actor in global seafood supply chains. Beyond exports, fisheries directly support communities. The sector employs more than 12 million people, with small-scale fishers forming the largest occupational segment across coastal regions.

Fish is also central to national food security. In 2024, Indonesia’s fish consumption reached 58.9 kg per capita per year, contributing approximately 15% of national daily animal-protein intake.

The Technology Gaps Holding Fisheries Back

Based on su-re.co’s preliminary analysis, the fisheries value chain can be simplified as:

Catch → Cooling → Power → Fuel → Value

Each stage affects the next. If catch is not cooled properly, quality declines. If cold storage lacks reliable power, the system fails. If that power depends on diesel, costs and emissions increase.

su-re.co identified three main technology gaps:

1. Cold chain infrastructure at landing sites

2. Reliable power to operate the cold chain

3. Low-carbon fuel for that power

Together, these gaps reduce product quality, limit local value capture, increase emissions, and make it harder for coastal regions to benefit from premium seafood markets.

Gap 1: Cold Chain at Landing Sites

Cold chain infrastructure is the first barrier between a premium catch and a lower-value commodity product.

For sashimi-grade tuna, an uninterrupted cold chain of around -18°C from harvest to export is essential. Even a small break in the chain can reduce the product from sashimi grade to canning grade.

For premium black tiger shrimp, time is also critical. If shrimp are left for 4–8 hours without freezing, melanosis can begin. Although melanosis is not harmful and does not affect taste, it changes the shrimp’s appearance. In premium markets, visual quality matters, and once the appearance declines, the price can fall to commodity levels.

This creates a race against time. As soon as fish or shrimp leave the water, their value begins to drop if they are not immediately chilled, frozen, or stored properly.

Many premium catches land in areas where cold infrastructure is still limited. As a result, cold-chain failure can expose 5–20% of catch volume to loss per failure event. The price gap is also significant: export-grade frozen tuna may reach around 2.8 times the Papua landing price, while premium shrimp may reach around 2.1 times the local price. In many cases, the cold chain is the key difference.

Gap 2: Reliable Power for Cold Chains

Cold storage, ice plants, and freezing systems require reliable electricity. However, in many high-value fisheries regions, the issue is not total annual energy, but peak power capacity.

In one example from the preliminary analysis, the region has an annual electricity surplus of around 41 GWh per year, while the cold chain requires only 8–10 GWh per year. At first, this seems sufficient.

However, during peak load, the grid safety margin may be only 0.05 MW. If cooling systems are switched on and require 0.8–1.2 MW, the grid may become unstable.

In simple terms: annual kilowatt-hours exist, but peak megawatts do not.

This means new cold-chain infrastructure cannot depend only on existing grid capacity. It needs local generation, storage, or off-peak scheduling.

The challenge is greater in remote islands where electricity is still dominated by diesel. Diesel-based generation can cost around Rp 5,000/kWh, while end-users may pay around Rp 1,500/kWh. The difference is covered through electricity subsidies and cross-subsidy mechanisms. Replacing diesel with renewable energy can reduce this hidden fiscal burden while improving energy access for productive sectors.

Gap 3: Low-Carbon Fuel for Fisheries Infrastructure

The third gap is the cost and carbon intensity of the energy used to power fisheries infrastructure.

In Papua, cold-chain electrification in 2024 relied heavily on a fossil-based grid. The regional grid mix was estimated to be around 94% fossil-based, while renewable energy represented only around 6%.

At the same time, diesel can be 3–7 times more expensive per kWh than renewable alternatives. This makes diesel a high-cost and high-emission option for new cold-chain sites.

Replacing diesel with renewable energy should therefore be seen as fiscal recovery, not only climate investment. Every kilowatt-hour generated from renewable energy instead of diesel can reduce long-term subsidy exposure.

Low-Carbon Infrastructure Solutions

The technologies needed to close these gaps already exist. su-re.co’s preliminary analysis highlights three practical interventions.

1. On-Site Solar PV and Battery Storage

Solar photovoltaic systems and battery storage can power cold storage and ice plants directly at landing hubs. This reduces pressure on the grid and lowers dependence on diesel. The solution is modular, scalable, and suitable for remote fisheries regions.

2. New Local Renewable Generation

New local renewable generation can create more peak capacity for cold chains and regional growth. This may include utility-scale solar power where land is available and micro-hydro expansion where suitable water resources exist. This solution requires stronger coordination with PLN, independent power producers, local governments, and investors.

3. Solar Ice Plants and Cold Storage

Solar-powered ice plants and cold storage can be deployed directly at landing sites. This helps preserve premium catch closer to the source, allowing fishers to maintain quality and capture higher value. According to the preliminary findings, transitioning to solar cooling could reduce total product carbon footprint by up to 27%.

What Policy and Industry Need to Unlock Scale

The main challenge is not whether the technology works. The challenge is whether policy, procurement, and investment frameworks can help it scale.

First, Indonesia needs more working demonstrators to prove performance and build investor confidence.

Second, renewable energy and storage should be included from the start of cold-chain procurement. Cold chains should be treated as energy-system infrastructure, not only as buildings or storage facilities.

Third, investment should prioritise regions where the value-energy gap is largest. These are the areas where better cooling, reliable power, and renewable energy can create the highest impact.

Finally, subsidy recovery should become part of the financing logic. Every kilowatt-hour generated from renewable energy instead of diesel can reduce future electricity subsidy exposure and help finance low-carbon infrastructure.

One Decision, Three National Priorities

Switching cold-chain systems from diesel reliance to renewable energy can support three national priorities at once.

• First, it supports fisheries downstreaming by helping Indonesia capture more value locally instead of exporting raw or underprocessed products. In Papua, closing the processing gap could unlock an estimated Rp 1.7 trillion per year in premium catch uplift opportunities.

• Second, it supports APBN subsidy recovery by reducing dependence on costly diesel-based electricity. The preliminary analysis estimates a potential Rp 0.8–1 trillion per year legacy fiscal recovery pool.

• Third, it supports Indonesia’s NDC and net-zero 2060 target. In regions such as Papua, where the grid remains highly fossil-based, every megawatt of renewable energy can deliver strong carbon-displacement value.

Indonesia’s fisheries sector is vital for the economy, coastal livelihoods, and food security. Yet its full potential is still limited by cold chain gaps, unreliable power, and dependence on high-cost, high-emission diesel.

Low-carbon cold chains offer a practical path forward. By investing in solar PV, battery storage, local renewable generation, solar ice plants, and renewable-powered cold storage, Indonesia can protect premium catch quality, increase local value, reduce subsidy exposure, and support national decarbonisation goals.

At su-re.co, we work at the intersection of climate resilience, renewable energy, and sustainable value chains. Through research, partnerships, and implementation, we support solutions that help communities and industries move from innovation to impact.

Want to collaborate on providing climate-resilient and low-carbon solutions for sustainable fisheries? Contact su-re.co and explore how su-re.co supports renewable energy, sustainable development, and resilient coastal communities.