New IRENA initiative to promote cross-border trade of green electricity in ASEAN

From setting up renewable energy projects on remote islands to promoting cross-border trade in green electricity, an intergovernmental organisation is on a mission to scale up clean energy in ASEAN.

The Middle East-based International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) on 28 October launched an initiative – the Accelerated Partnership for Renewable Energy in Southeast Asia (APRESA) – at the Singapore-IRENA high-level forum. The forum is part of the Singapore International Energy Week conference.

Minister of State for Trade and Industry Gan Siow Huang said at the conference: “Singapore supports this initiative as a concrete step by IRENA to support our region’s energy needs.”

The launch of the IRENA initiative comes on the back of several other partnerships and announcements made during the week-long conference, aimed at promoting cross-border electricity trade among ASEAN countries and accelerating the region’s efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of its power sector.

For example, Singapore’s Energy Market Authority on 28 October also inked an agreement with Australia’s energy regulator to share best practices on each country’s gas and electricity markets and deepen cooperation on low-carbon technologies.
 

Australia is among five countries from which Singapore is looking to import greener energy, as the resource-limited island state aims to wean off natural gas, a fossil fuel that is responsible for around 95 per cent of its electricity generation.

In 2024, Singapore gave conditional approval to import around 1.75 gigawatts of solar energy from Australia’s Northern Territory, with the power transmitted over a 4,300km subsea cable. If further approvals are granted, this project is likely to be completed after 2035.

Highlighting the features of the new initiative, Mr Gurbuz Gonul, director of country engagement and partnerships at IRENA, said during a presentation at the forum that it has four pillars.

These are strengthening renewable energy infrastructure in the region, improving regulatory conditions, enhancing the green economies of the countries, and mobilising private sector investments.

Some of the key steps to achieving these aims include phasing out diesel generators on remote islands by 90 per cent and replacing them with greener solutions such as solar plants.

“This will also stabilise energy costs and improve electricity supply. These systems can support productive use of energy, such as in food processing, fisheries, cold storage, and digital interconnectivity, expanding local livelihoods and economic opportunities,” Mr Gonul said.

The initiative will also promote renewable energy adoption in key industries and rural ones to drive green growth and create job opportunities, he added, highlighting the importance of ensuring that local communities benefit from the energy transition.

To ensure that this energy pivot gets the finance and investments needed, IRENA will also convene an investment forum in 2026 to “matchmake” bankable projects with interested investors, said Mr Gonul.

IRENA’s APRESA initiative was formed to support the five-year ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation that was endorsed by the region’s energy ministers in mid-October, he said.

The energy cooperation blueprint charts out targets for the bloc, including one for renewables to account for 45 per cent of the region’s power capacity by 2030. Currently, the figure stands at more than 30 per cent.

One of the key ways the region hopes to increase deployment of renewable energy is through the ASEAN Power Grid, which can facilitate cross-border electricity trade among countries in Southeast Asia.

The ASEAN Power Grid allows countries to share renewable energy resources and can help those in the region diversify their fuel mix. Low-carbon electricity imports form a key part of Singapore’s strategy to decarbonise its power sector, which currently accounts for 40 per cent of the Republic’s carbon emissions.
 

According to a September 2025 report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), Southeast Asia has an estimated 20 terawatts of untapped solar and wind potential – equivalent to around 55 times the region’s current total power capacity.

“For the energy transition, it is indeed a worrying time. Global climate ambition appears to be wavering, and the COP28 goal of tripling renewables by 2030 now seems like a long shot,” said Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology Tan See Leng at the Singapore-IRENA high-level forum on 28 October.

He was referring to the 2023 UN climate change conference, COP28, where countries committed to tripling global renewable energy capacity by 2030.

Dr Tan said he hopes that IRENA’s initiative can address challenges such as financing of renewable projects and modernising the region’s grids.

He noted that the average cost of electricity in the region could fall from US$120 (S$155) per megawatt-hour (MWh) today to around US$80/MWh by 2050, as the generation mix shifts to more cost-competitive renewable sources.

“Not only would realising the (ASEAN Power Grid) vision allow countries to trade energy to catalyse new generation capacity, it will also facilitate access to more affordable electricity within the region,” he added at a separate Singapore-IEA forum at the conference on 28 October.

Apart from Australia, Singapore has granted conditional approvals and licences to import greener electricity from Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The 11 projects across the countries cover solar, wind, and hydropower, with a combined capacity of around 8GW.

Singapore aims to import around 6GW of electricity by 2035 – about a third of its energy needs then.
 

Commenting on IRENA’s initiative, Mr Niels de Boer, from the Energy Research Institute@NTU, said it will serve to address two obstacles to realising the regional grid – increasing access to finance and developing local manpower.

“Diesel is expensive on remote islands. If you can get solar there and a little bit of power for everyone, you can really transform people’s lives,” added Mr de Boer, who is the institute’s chief operating officer.

But while partnerships are strong within ASEAN, executing the projects will be challenging, and it could take longer than five years. The challenges range from language barriers in training locals to operate renewable plants to political obstacles.
 

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.