Top image: Photo: Hendrojkson, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
State electricity company PLN is preparing battery-swap infrastructure in Klungkung regency, Bali, for a pilot fleet of small electric work vehicles run with Korean partners, Antara reported. The trial is due to start this month with five vehicles and is aimed at helping Nusa Penida, the island off Bali’s south-east coast that belongs to Klungkung, become a “green island” by 2030.
Who is involved
The project was set up through a memorandum of understanding between PLN’s Bali distribution unit (PLN UID Bali), the Indonesian company PT INAKO Kreta Udhaya, the Korea Smart e-Mobility Association (KEMA) and the Korea Automotive Technology Institute (KATECH), according to Antara. PLN’s role is to supply the grid connections and electricity for the swap stations.
Antara named the Korean side’s representatives as Changhyun Jeong, director of KATECH’s Jeonnam division, and Jiyong Song, executive director of KEMA, with Suchang Oh representing PT INAKO. The partners describe the project as a trial of the vehicles in everyday working conditions in Klungkung before any wider rollout across Bali.
- Stations: battery-swap points at five strategic locations in Klungkung.
- Vehicles: three-wheeled electric vehicles for waste collection, refrigerated transport and cargo, plus small three- and four-wheeled agricultural vehicles.
- Timeline: a pilot with five vehicles from October 2026, with plans to expand to more than 30 vehicles across Bali in 2027.
“PLN UID Bali is fully committed to providing the best support, especially in terms of electricity needs.” – Ajrun Karim, general manager of PLN UID Bali, via Antara (translated from Indonesian)
Klungkung Regent I Made Satria tied the trial to the regency’s plan for a greener Nusa Penida and to sustainable tourism, OtoDream reported. Cleaner local transport for rubbish collection, farming and goods delivery is presented as one part of that wider environmental push.
Why swapping suits work vehicles
Battery swapping has so far been used in Indonesia mostly for electric motorbikes, where riders exchange a flat pack for a charged one in a couple of minutes. The Klungkung pilot applies the same idea to light commercial vehicles. For waste vehicles and delivery tricycles that run all day, swapping avoids long charging stops, and a central station operator can manage battery health and charge during off-peak hours. The trade-off is that vehicles and packs must follow a common standard, which is one reason a small trial fleet makes sense before any scale-up. Our guide to charging an EV in Indonesia covers how swapping works for motorbikes today.
What it means
The trial is small, but it is an unusual attempt in Indonesia to use battery swapping for municipal and agricultural vehicles rather than private motorbikes. If it works on Nusa Penida, the model could appeal to other islands and tourist areas where regional governments run their own vehicle fleets. Private buyers will not see a direct effect yet; the more immediate signal is that PLN is willing to back swapping for commercial fleets as well as two-wheelers.
Related: Bali’s EV fleet passes 17,700 as PLN opens charging to private investors.
Sources: Antara (1 Oct 2026); OtoDream (4 Oct 2026).
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[…] is one of several provinces where PLN has recently reported fast EV growth. This week we covered PLN’s plans for battery-swap stations for electric work vehicles in Klungkung and Nusa Penida, and we have also reported on a 4.5-fold jump in charging use in West Sumatra and EV growth in […]