The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have forged a new partnership which aims to scale up renewable energy deployment in the region and advance the transition towards an energy sustainable future. A memorandum was signed on the side-lines of the 36th ASEAN Ministers on Energy (AMEM) and the Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW) on 30 October, 2018.

Similar to many other growing Southeast Asian countries, Thailand is facing an increase in energy demand. According to the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), energy demand in Southeast Asia in 2040 is expected to increase between 110- to 130 percent. Meanwhile, due to Thailand’s good economic performance and population growth, energy demand is forecasted to rise by almost 80 percent in the next 20 years. At the same time, Thailand is now facing a fossil fuels crisis.

Renewable energy is set to change the energy landscape of the region and its benefits are plentiful. The regional goal is to ensure 23 percent of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) primary energy mix is made up of renewable energy by 2025.However, many of those living in Southeast Asia’s remote villages are still reliant on traditional biomass like firewood for heating and age-old diesel generators for intermittent electricity supply.

Southeast Asia is home to a wind energy “goldmine” just waiting to be tapped. Leading the way forward is the Philippines with an estimated technical potential of around 70 gigawatts (GW). However, Indonesia is not to be outdone in this regard.The largest economy in the region has attractive demographics and a surging power demand.

At the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi last month, Thongloun Sisoulith, Prime Minister of Lao PDR acknowledged the recent devastation caused by a hydroelectric dam failure in his country and added that his government would proceed with caution with regards to future hydroelectric investments. Often touted as the “Battery of Southeast Asia,” Lao has 46 operating hydroelectric power plants and intends to almost double that number by 2020.

Southeast Asia’s roads are home to over 20 million cars. This number is expected to rise to 62 million by 2040 according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). At the same time, new high-speed rail systems are being built all over the region, resulting in the recent infrastructure boom. The growth of the transportation sector is a welcome sign as it indicates that the region is catching up economically with the rest of the world.

Members states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are turning to renewable energy as the most sustainable way to ensure energy security. The shift to renewables can be expensive and arduous.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has set an ambitious target of securing 23 percent of its primary energy from renewable sources by 2025 as energy demand in the region is expected to grow by 50 percent.

With electricity demand in Vietnam growing 12 percent annually, the Vietnamese government has set a goal to generate 265 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity by 2020 and 570 billion kWh of electricity by 2030. This is to meet the surging demand for power resulting from rapid urbanisation and industrialisation in the country.Currently, the country produces more than 170 billion kWh of electricity from fossil energy sources, such as coal and gas – which are speedily being exhausted.

A Pan-Asian super grid connecting electrical transmission networks across the continent providing clean and renewable power to more than half the world’s population may be a fantasy for now.