ASEAN needs faster renewable transition to meet soaring demand - IRENA

Francesco La Camera, Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said ASEAN’s energy demand is projected to triple by 2050, driven by rapid economic growth and rising electrification. While the region’s renewable energy capacity has reached 113 gigawatts (GW), with 5.2 GW added in 2024, it must grow far more rapidly to meet its 2030 target of 373 GW.

“Energy demand, especially for electricity, will rise dramatically in the years to come. The region is also very dependent on coal, which means a huge amount of emissions in the air. That’s why it’s very important that we deploy renewables as much as possible.” La Camera said at the Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW) 2025.

He outlined three key areas that governments should focus on to accelerate the transition: infrastructure, market design, and human and institutional capacity.

First, La Camera stressed the need for interconnected and flexible power grids both within countries and across borders to support renewable integration. “We need grids that are interconnected, flexible, and balanced, both among countries and domestically,” he said.

Second, he called for market reforms to better support renewable investments. “We need markets designed for renewables. Short-term contracts are not the best option. Long-term contracts ensure very low costs compared to other technologies,” he noted, adding that renewables are already more cost-effective than coal in over 90% of cases globally.

Third, La Camera highlighted the need to build human and institutional capacity, including retraining workers from the fossil fuel sector and strengthening governance to manage more complex, decentralised energy systems.

“While renewables are clean and ensure better energy security, distributed systems can be more complex to manage than centralised ones,” he said. “We need to strengthen the capacity of institutions to make this system work.”

To finance the renewable transition, La Camera also emphasised the importance of creating a conducive investment environment. “Governments and intergovernmental entities, including IRENA, must help match projects with funding and support the development of strong project pipelines.”

He added that such plans should align with emission-reduction goals and include measures to improve project bankability to accelerate implementation.

As ASEAN works toward its 2030 and 2050 energy targets, regional cooperation, grid interconnectivity, and policy reform remain critical to ensuring that the region’s energy transition keeps pace with growing demand.