Transition to clean energy that entails transforming the structures and systems may come with it the tradeoffs of any shifts. The Energy Transition Mechanism ensures that any social, environmental, and economic costs of shifting from heavily depending on coal or other fossil fuels will be mitigated and the welfare of affected sectors protected. 

ADB established the Blue SEA (Southeast Asia) Finance Hub at its Indonesia Resident Mission in November 2021. The Hub is supported by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Catalytic Green Finance Facility (ACGF) which was launched in April 2019 to promote green infrastructure investments in Southeast Asia based on the need for a regional initiative for capacity building, improve knowledge, and build a pipeline of projects that support ocean health and sustainable blue economy.

The Energy Sector Group led by its Chief, Priyantha Wijayatunga is scheduled to present the guidance notes on natural gas and waste to energy at the Across-the-Board session on 28 July at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. At the helm of the preparation of the natural gas note is David Morgado while Stephen Peters is for the waste to energy note.

It can be recalled that both these notes along with the energy sector Paris Alignment and large hydropower papers were among the commitments of the sector following the approval of the 2021 Energy Policy.

ADB and the Government of the United Kingdom (UK) have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a £107 million (around $134 million) trust fund to support efforts by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to scale up green financing and shift to low-emission, climate-resilient development.

The Energy Sector Group will present the guidance notes on gas and waste to energy projects at the Across-the-Board Session on the week of 18 July. The presentation will be led by Energy SG Chief Priyantha Wijayatunga. Select members of ADB management and staff will also attend as observers. The preparation of the guidance notes on selected technologies follows the requirements set forth by the 2021 Energy Policy.

Global energy investment has been projected to grow by 8% in 2022 by the International Energy Agency. This increase is said to be driven by clean energy investments in both renewable energy and energy efficiency that recorded a faster rate of increase at 12% since 2020 compared to 2% in the first 5 years since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015.

While heartening to learn of this record rate of growth in global energy investments, there are worrisome details  that are notable:

Clean energy is still relevant as ever particularly at this point in history when the world is losing time to change gears and drive towards net-zero emissions. More than 3,000 people including policy makers, energy experts, private sector, and other stakeholders joined the Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF) 2022 held virtually from 14 to 17 June.

President Masa will deliver the Welcome Remarks at the Opening Plenary of the 17^th Asia Clean Energy Forum.

On 1 June 2022, the Energy Transition Mechanism Partnership Trust Fund (ETMPTF) was established under the Clean Energy Financing Partnership Facility (CEFPF). The multi-partner trust fund was designed to catalyze public and private capital to accelerate the transition from carbon-intensive coal-based power plants to clean energy in Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) developing member countries (DMCs) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  

Our very own Energy SG Chief, Priyantha Wijayatunga shares his thoughts about the great task ahead. In this article, he talks about the brass tacks of overcoming the challenges, taking the opportunities, and realizing the aspirations of the energy transition.