ASEAN’s rapid economic growth in recent years has been a force to be reckoned with. Coupled with ambitious development goals and a population boom, all these have inevitably led to an increase in energy demand across the region.
While countries here continue to rely heavily on fossil fuels to power their progress, there is an urgent need to move away from the status quo. This is not just to mitigate the effects of climate change, of which many, if not all ASEAN countries will bear the brunt of, but also to attract foreign direct investments from sources that are increasingly putting clean energy at the forefront of their agenda. So how can ASEAN grow sustainably?
An attempt at answering this question, the Energy Transition in ASEAN paper published on 5 April advocates for greater political commitment by ASEAN governments towards the shift to renewables and energy sources that are less carbon intensive. It also looks at how greater public and private cooperation can be fostered to close the region’s sustainable infrastructure investment gap to support this transition.
The paper is a collaborative effort between the EU-ASEAN Business Council, EuroCham Cambodia, EuroCham Indonesia, EuroCham Malaysia, the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, the European Chamber of Commerce Thailand, and EuroCham Vietnam. It offers an overview of the energy landscape of 6 ASEAN countries, as well as regional and national recommendations.
This launch webinar will cover key takeaways, and bring the Paper to life via a panel discussion with experts across the region.
Agenda:
| 1600 | Opening remarks by Lazeena Rahman, Senior Climate Finance Specialist, Southeast Asia Department – Energy Division, Asian Development Bank |
| 1610 | Overview of the Energy Transition Paper & Key Recommendations by Daniel Pans, Board Member, EU-ASEAN Business Council and EuroCham Malaysia; Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of DPO International |
| 1620 | Panel Discussion
– Given the recommendations set out in the paper, how can they be realistically implemented on the ground? – What support do businesses need to make the transition? – What opportunities are there in the renewables sector that can be captured, and what are the challenges faced in the uptake of renewables across the region? – What role do financial institutions play in energy transition? Speakers: · Lazeena Rahman, Senior Climate Finance Specialist, Southeast Asia Department – Energy Division, Asian Development Bank · Marie Gail de Sagon, Head, Energy & Minerals Division, ASEAN Secretariat · Massimiliano Tropeano, Sustainability and Garment Expert, EuroCham Cambodia · Frank Phuan, CEO and Co-Founder, EDP Renewables · Laurent Margoloff, Lead for Utilities Asia Pacific, Sector Coverage|Energy, Wholesale Banking, ING Bank N.V. Moderator: · Chris Humphrey, Executive Director, EU-ASEAN Business Council |
| 1705 | Q&A |
| 1715 | Ends |