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US companies were interested in clean-energy partnerships with their Indonesian counterparts, US Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke said on Tuesday.

Visiting Indonesia on an Asian tour aimed at promoting clean-energy opportunities, Locke said he envisioned Indonesia would play a leading role in the world’s sustainable-energy sector.

“The future of the global economy, including Indonesia, depends on how it can fulfill the demand for clean energy as we progress into the 21st century,” he said.

Locke was accompanied by executives from 10 US energy companies, including Caterpillar, General Electric, Oshkosh and Peabody Energy.

He met with senior Indonesian officials, including the trade minister and the coordinating minister for the economy.

“The closed meeting between the minister and the US commerce secretary focused on the energy sector, and each minister outlined their policies related to climate change,” Development Planning Minister Armida Alisjahbana said.

Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu added that several US companies were interested in investing in clean energy in Indonesia. However, she declined to name to firms.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa said US investors had shown interest in investing in small-scale power generation plants and geothermal energy.

Mari said that Indonesia needed to make the transition to using mostly clean energy, such as geothermal, biofuels, solar and wind power, to achieve the national target of reducing green-house emissions by 20 percent by 2020.

“However there needs to be solid foreign investment in promoting clean energy use here, because without it, the transition would be hard financially, and could result in job losses,” Mari said.