SINGAPORE: Southeast Asia is set to be a driving force of global energy trends, said Sue-Ern Tan, head of the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Regional Cooperation Centre. 

This comes as the region is projected to account for 25 per cent of the rise in energy demand over the next decade, fuelled by a growing population and economic expansion. 

“We see the need to really think about how we meet that energy demand growth that is so necessary for this region in a secure way, an affordable way and, where possible, in a clean way,” Ms Tan told CNA on Wednesday (Mar 26). 

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY TRANSITION

The actions by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will be critical to meeting the global environmental targets, she noted. 

The region is the world's fourth-largest energy consumer, and is still heavily dependent on fossil fuels. 

However, she noted that eight out of the 10 ASEAN member states have set net-zero targets. 

“There is a lot of clear ambition and political willingness to embrace the need to transition to a lower emissions economy,” said Ms Tan. 

However, she stressed that in order to achieve a sustainable energy transition, governments have to work together to ensure energy security and affordability. 

The IEA Regional Cooperation Centre, established in Singapore at the end of last year, works with countries in Southeast Asia and beyond to enhance energy security and accelerate clean energy transitions. 

It is the IEA’s first office outside of its Paris headquarters.

On how the agency has been encouraging regional energy collaboration, Ms Tan said: “We (are) very, very new still, but some of the things that we've already started working on is talking to the key governments in the region about how best we can continue to support them in meeting their net emission goal, and in a way that's also very secure.”

DECARBONISING THE MARITIME INDUSTRY

Ms Tan, who was speaking to CNA’s Roland Lim on the sidelines of the ongoing Singapore Maritime Week, also touched on shipping emissions, which contribute to about 3 per cent of the total global emissions.

The maritime industry is facing headwinds, such as trade tensions and supply chain disruptions, as it aims to lower emissions and adopt greener fuels, especially in Southeast Asia.

Ammonia and hydrogen are increasingly seen as key alternative fuels.

“We do need to think about decarbonising the sector,” said Ms Tan, urging governments to encourage demand for low emissions fuels, including setting emission reduction targets and offering financial incentives to shipping companies. 

“But also very importantly, we need to start planning now for the investments that we’ll need, particularly for how we deal with the new infrastructure that we'll need at ports for these lower emissions technologies and fuels.”