Category: Knowledge Center Asia

Industrial Transformation in ASEAN: Paper

Industrial Transformation in ASEAN: Paper

January 16, 2026 | , ,

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

Bangladesh’s Energy Efficiency Goals: Report

January 2, 2026 | , ,

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 in Asia: Paper

December 26, 2025 | , ,

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

Socio-Economics of Malaysia’s Energy Transition: Report

December 19, 2025 | , ,

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

Coal Transition Impacts in Indonesia : Report

December 12, 2025 | , ,

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

Supply Chain Carbon Risks in South Korea: Report

December 4, 2025 | , ,

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 Energy Policy Review: Report

November 28, 2025 | , ,

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 Asia’s Renewable Energy Investment Ecosystem: Report

November 21, 2025 | , ,

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

China’s Climate Transition Outlook: Report

November 12, 2025 | , ,

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

Unlocking India’s Green Hydrogen Exports: Report

November 6, 2025 | , , ,

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

Socio-Economics of ASEAN’s Energy Transition: Report

October 30, 2025 | , ,

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

Bridging Adaptation Finance Gap in Asia: Brief

October 24, 2025 | , ,

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

East Asia’s Sustainable Energy Future: Report

October 17, 2025 | , ,

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

Investment Needs of Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition: Paper

October 10, 2025 | , ,

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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Potential of Grid-Scale Battery Storage in Japan: Report

Potential of Grid-Scale Battery Storage in Japan: Report

September 19, 2025 | , , ,

Grid-scale battery storage projects have rapidly expanded in recent years across the globe. This expansion is driven by the sharp decline in battery costs and the large-scale integration of VRE, which has significantly enhanced the competitiveness of grid-scale batteries as a means of providing system flexibility. With the increasing deployment of VRE, the structure of grid operation, transmission and distribution businesses, and thermal power generation businesses may experience structural transformations.

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Progress in ZEV Market in EU: Report

Progress in ZEV Market in EU: Report

September 17, 2025 | , , ,

Automakers are on track to meet the EU CO2 performance targets for new vehicles, relying mostly on electric cars as a compliance option. Among the major markets, EV uptake has been strong in Germany and France and has recently increased in Italy and Spain. Several smaller markets show particularly high EV market shares. Building up battery production and supply chains in Europe will require concerted efforts by governments and industry as well as market confidence.

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Role of Batteries in India’s Power Market: Report

Role of Batteries in India’s Power Market: Report

September 17, 2025 | , , ,

As more variable renewable energy enters India’s electricity grid, coinciding with sharp declines in battery costs, new business cases are emerging for BESS. One particularly promising opportunity is battery participation in India’s wholesale power and ancillary services market. Price volatility in the day-ahead market segment of the power exchanges is becoming the norm. Electricity prices are now regularly crashing during solar hours and surging during the evenings and nights.

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Industrial Decarbonization in East Asia: Report

Industrial Decarbonization in East Asia: Report

September 12, 2025 | , ,

This report identifies the best pathways to eliminate industrial greenhouse gas emissions in three emerging economies in the region: China, Indonesia, and Viet Nam. It focuses on manufacturing activities (not mining, drilling, agriculture, or construction) and covers a range of industrial decarbonization technologies, including energy and material efficiency; electrification; carbon capture, use, and storage; green hydrogen; and clean chemical feedstocks.

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Storage for Southeast Asia’s Energy Transition: Briefing

Storage for Southeast Asia’s Energy Transition: Briefing

September 5, 2025 | , ,

The Southeast Asia region, with its rapidly growing economies, increasing energy demands and grid constraints, is facing unique challenges in the energy transition. The combination of the shift to renewable energy and the lack of grid stability in several Southeast Asian nations indicates the need for storage technologies, a need which is starting to be recognised at governmental level.

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Energy Transition Investment Trends in India: Report

Energy Transition Investment Trends in India: Report

August 29, 2025 | , ,

India’s energy transition investment trends showed a significant shift from renewables to e-mobility, with e-mobility investments rising from 6% in 2017 to 49% in 2024, energy storage investments rising from 1% to 9%, while energy efficiency investments fluctuated around 4%. Emerging technologies like the circular economy and low carbon fuels also received attention, though CCUS investments remain in early stages due to high costs.

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