Indonesia arrived at COP30 in Brazil armed with a headline: the country’s carbon exchange, IDXCarbon, booked interest and purchase commitments totaling 2.75 million tons of CO₂ credits from more than 20 buyers. It was presented as proof that Indonesia is ready for a global climate-finance role. Yet the celebration masks an uncomfortable truth: while carbon trading accelerates, Indonesia’s ecological debts at home remain largely unsettled — and in some cases, dangerously ignored.

The electric vehicle (EV) charging station arm of Vietnamese’ Vingroup, V-Green has recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with PT Graha Sarana Duta (Telkom Property), a subsidiary of state-owned PT Telkom Indonesia Tbk (TLKM), to develop public electric vehicle charging stations (SPKLU) in various regions of Indonesia.

Indonesia welcomed 12.8 million foreign visitors in the first ten months of 2025, an increase of 10.32% from the corresponding period last year. Vietnam, on the other hand, reported an impressive growth of 21.5% to 17.2 million in the same period.

Indonesia booked trade surplus of US$35.9 billion in the first ten months of 2025, surged by 44% from the corresponding period last year, thanks to higher growth of export (+6.96%) than import (+2.2%). Indonesia’s export growth was substantially smaller than Vietnam, which posted export growth of 16.2% in the same period.

The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) has indicted 11 individuals—three former Telkom officials and eight directors or controllers from nine private companies—over a coordinated scheme that prosecutors say drained Rp464.93 billion from Telkom Group between 2016 and 2018.

PT Bakrie Sumatra Plantation (UNSP) Tbk is among the best performing stocks with 145% gain year-to-date, but is one of few plantation companies reported net loss in the first nine months of 2025.

State-owned oil and gas company Pertamina has kicked off merger of PT Pertamina Patra Niaga (PPN), which is at the heart of investigation into oil mafia case, and PT Kilang Pertamina International (KPI) and 10 other companies. 

The images of thousands of logs hurtling through villages from Tapanuli to Pasaman to Aceh Singkil were framed as “allegations” of illegal logging. But the truth is far more uncomfortable: much of the ecological damage in Sumatra has never needed to be illegal. It has been fully licensed, state-approved, and protected by an AMDAL regime that has long ceased to function as a safeguard.

When massive floods swept across North Sumatera, West Sumatera, and Aceh, one image stood out above all others: thousands of logs drifting violently through swollen rivers and broken villages. For many, this was the most visible evidence yet of unchecked deforestation—a disaster years in the making.

The Indonesian aviation industry is welcoming a new airline, namely Mukhtara Air, which will start operating in January 2026. Mukhtara Air is under Manazil Al Mukhtara Company Holding, a company based in Medina, Saudi Arabia. The group is known as a leading company in the Hajj, Umrah and hospitality services sector in Medina.