Category: Knowledge Center Asia

Bioenergy Market in India: Report

Bioenergy is particularly important for India’s rapidly growing energy market. It can strengthen energy security, reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels, create economic development and employment opportunities – especially in rural communities – and contribute to lowering greenhouse gas emissions. India’s ethanol industry has emerged as one of the country’s most successful policy-driven energy stories. This report examines the current supply and demand of liquid and gaseous biofuels in India and their forecasted growth to 2030.

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Navigating Energy Transition in Brazil, Indonesia and South Africa: Briefing

Brazil, Indonesia, and South Africa diverge in important ways: Brazil is a net crude oil exporter with a commodity-dependent growth model; Indonesia relies heavily on domestically produced coal but remains a major importer of oil products; and South Africa is a net importer of most fossil fuels and faces a protracted electricity crisis driven by the decline of its coal-based utility system. This briefing provides a snapshot of political economy insights relating to dynamics around energy security in Brazil, Indonesia, and South Africa.

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Power Sector Transition in Southeast Asia: Report

The power sector in Southeast Asia is central to the region’s economic development and decarbonization pathway. Accounting for 65 percent of the emissions reductions needed to meet national commitments, the sector presents both substantial transition risks and major investment opportunities. Yet, clean-energy investment in SEA remains insufficient to align with national and global climate goals. This report provides a technical reference to support financial institutions in conducting robust transition assessments of power sector companies in SEA.

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Global Electricity Trends and 2030 Forecast: Report

Global electricity demand is forecast to increase at a brisk average annual rate of 3.6% over the 2026-2030 forecast period, supported by rising consumption from industry, electric vehicles, air conditioning and data centres. Half of the world’s electricity is forecast to come from renewables and nuclear by 2030. Although coal generation is set to lose ground globally, it remains the single largest source of electricity in 2030. The Age of Electricity requires a fast and efficient expansion of grids and system flexibility.

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Cyber Security for ASEAN Smart Grids: Report

The potential of smart grids, particularly those utilising renewable energy such as solar, wind, and biomass, cannot be overstated. These DERs provide flexibility, reduce transmission losses, and can help mitigate the volatility of energy supply. Nevertheless, as energy grids become more decentralised, the accompanying risk of cyberattacks increases. This research project seeks to address the dual challenge of promoting the use of distributed energy resources while enhancing the cybersecurity of distributed energy systems.

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Decarbonising India’s Aluminium Sector: Report

The aluminium sector is hard-to-abate, owing to its high electricity consumption, met by coal-based electricity. Hence, reducing its carbon footprint is vital, not only to support India’s net-zero goals but also mitigate export risks from emerging trade regulations, i.e. the EU’s CBAM. As other nations develop low-carbon technologies & create trade measures based on embedded emissions, India’s aluminium industry is presented with an opportunity to lower its emission intensity to be a global leader in sustainable metal manufacturing. This will also drive India’s clean energy transition in the longer run.

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Industrial Transformation in ASEAN: Paper

ASEAN countries have set bold renewable and net-zero targets not just to cut emissions but to strengthen energy and fiscal resilience. Implementation, however, remains uneven. This white paper by the World Economic Forum highlights that fragmented governance, high financing costs and divergent national priorities continue to slow progress, leaving a gap between regional ambition and tangible outcome. Closing this gap requires greater alignment, coordination and practical mechanisms for collective action.

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Bangladesh’s Energy Efficiency Goals: Report

In less than a decade, Bangladesh improved energy efficiency by 13.64%, an annual gain of 1.52%. In FY 2023-24 alone, fossil fuel consumption of 7 Mtoe was avoided, slashing import bills by USD3.3 billion. This sustained national effort created a framework for energy efficiency. However, after initial gains from FY 2016-17, progress slowed until FY 2020-21 when energy supply disruptions and higher tariffs made efficiency a priority. Bangladesh is on course to achieve its energy efficiency targets a year early. With households and industry consuming two-thirds of the country’s energy, these sectors should be the focus for greater energy efficiency gains.

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Value Chain Decarbonization in Asia: Paper

Value chain decarbonization is one of the most complex and significant frontiers of corporate action. For Asia, this challenge is especially significant: the region’s economies are deeply interconnected through trade, manufacturing, and resource and capital flows, making them essential to the world’s collective net-zero pathway. This white paper highlights the opportunities along the value chains of Asian businesses, and outlines the immediate actions enterprises can take, as well as exploring long-term strategies for success.

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Socio-Economics of Malaysia’s Energy Transition: Report

Renewable energy employment in Malaysia is projected to quadruple between 2021-2050 under the 1.5°C Scenario. Growth is led mainly by solar and bioenergy. As a major global solar PV manufacturer, Malaysia is well placed to leverage this global shift. Employment in solar is expected to reach around 90,000 jobs by 2030 and 224,000 by 2050, accounting for more than half of total renewable energy jobs. Bioenergy follows closely, with a share of 40.9%. These trends underscore the significance of the sector in Malaysia’s energy transition and suggest potential opportunities in terms of socio-economic benefits.

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Coal Transition Impacts in Indonesia : Report

Indonesia released its enhanced nationally determined contribution in 2022—pledging to reduce emissions from the energy sector by 358 MtCO2e by 2030, a target of around 12.5% of the country’s emissions reduction goal. The energy transition will provide access to clean energy, encourage the growth of the green economy, and reduce emissions. However, to ensure the process benefits vulnerable groups, planning and policies must embed an inclusive approach to a just transition in coal mining communities.

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Supply Chain Carbon Risks in South Korea: Report

South Korean companies are facing increasing carbon risks along their supply chains as global carbon regulations continue to strengthen. These directives include the International Financial Reporting Standards Sustainability Standards (IFRS S2), the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), as well as voluntary carbon management initiatives across the global tech industry. A growing number of Asian markets, such as Singapore and Hong Kong, have mandated IFRS S2, requiring companies to disclose climate-related risks and opportunities.

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Korea Energy Policy Review: Report

Korea faces distinct challenges in its efforts to expand renewable energy sources. Factors include the limited amount of available land, the large share of forested areas and high population density. Public opposition to energy infrastructure also leads to delays, resulting in higher costs, which are having a material impact on the location of energy projects. Korea sets out many of its climate and energy policy objectives in strategic plans, which are updated on a cyclical basis. As much of Korea’s climate and energy policy is set out in these non-binding plans, it may be vulnerable to political changes.

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Central Asia’s Renewable Energy Investment Ecosystem: Report

Central Asian economies face significant climate-related challenges. This study explores the factors influencing renewable energy investments in Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan), offering an investment promotion program as a pilot to develop a comprehensive strategy for select renewable energy sectors. The research identifies constraints, challenges, and opportunities through extensive data collection, assessing the region’s capacity and potential for renewable energy investments. 

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China’s Climate Transition Outlook: Report

More than two-thirds (69%) of experts believe China will significantly or partly overachieve its new climate targets for 2035, which aim to reduce emissions by 7-10% compared to peak levels, showing China can indeed achieve much higher reductions. Yet, uncertainty about China’s short-term energy transition and industrial decarbonisation has increased following the announcement of the conservative 2035 NDC targets, amid economic uncertainties and geopolitical volatility.

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Unlocking India’s Green Hydrogen Exports: Report

India is at a critical juncture in its clean energy transition, with green hydrogen offering a transformative opportunity to diversify the country’s energy mix and participate in the future of global energy trade. This report identifies key challenges and strategic drivers in India’s export ecosystem of green hydrogen and its derivatives, analysing market demand trends, cost dynamics, and four critical trade enablers: infrastructure preparedness, standards and certifications, strategic partnerships and global agreements, and trade and financial de-risking mechanisms.

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Socio-Economics of ASEAN’s Energy Transition: Report

The transition of ASEAN towards renewable energy is marked by strategic ambitions, shifting policies and complex geopolitics. To maximise socio-economic benefits, ASEAN would therefore need to harmonise regional policies, develop just transition strategies, improve grid inter-connection, develop critical minerals and launch targeted upskilling initiatives, while carefully balancing geopolitical influences from external actors and ensuring equitable and resilient development across all member states.

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Bridging Adaptation Finance Gap in Asia: Brief

Addressing Asia’s climate adaptation finance gap requires a coordinated, whole-government approach to overcome systemic barriers such as limited institutional capacity and misaligned financial instruments. Scaling international public finance – prioritizing grants and other concessional funding is essential to meet commitments under the Paris Agreement and Glasgow Climate Pact. Strengthening local participation and leadership ensures that adaptation finance effectively reaches vulnerable communities, aligning with principles of locally led adaptation. 

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East Asia’s Sustainable Energy Future: Report

The report published by the World Bank highlights the pathways to intertwine energy and development imperatives in East Asia. It outlines pathways to decarbonize the power and industrial sectors—which together contribute 75–87 percent of emissions—through greater efficiency, electrification, renewable energy, and advanced technologies such as green hydrogen and carbon capture, utilization, and storage.

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Investment Needs of Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition: Paper

Indonesia’s current transition from fossil-based energy to renewable sources requires strategic considerations of how its investment needs and impacts should be equitably distributed among all stakeholders. With an ambitious target to generate 61% renewable energy (RE) in the Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL) 2025-2034 and President Prabowo’s bold remark on achieving 100% RE by 2035, a rigorous assessment of transition costs and benefits is instrumental.

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