SE Asia needs to bridge $0.9T energy efficiency investment gap by 2040 – PE2, APEIA
SINGAPORE, 23 October 2024 –Philippine Energy Efficiency Alliance (PE2) president and Asia-Pacific ESCO Industry Alliance (APEIA) co-chair Alexander Ablaza delivered the second keynote message during the Energy Efficiency track of the Asia Clean Energy Summit (ACES) 2024, held today at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.
Ablaza announced before a full house of energy efficiency (EE) track participants that Southeast Asia will require USD 892 billion of EE investments through 2040. He said that innovative sustainability financial mechanisms and products such as sustainability bonds, real estate investment trusts, blended finance, carbon transition and retirement bonds, sustainability-linked debt, venture capital funds, green mortgages, and most especially, performance contracting and leasing, will play an immense role in mobilizing private capital to bridge the long-term EE investment gap.
The PE2 and APEIA head explained that no less than USD 595 billion off-balance sheet EE capital will have to flow through energy service company (ESCO) performance contracts, public-private partnership (PPP) transactions, large-scale government-led retrofit programs and other off-balance-sheet modalities. He underscored the imperative for governments to foster or jumpstart the growth of the ESCO market through enabling policy frameworks so that ESCOs effectively become non-bank specialist vehicles for EE project financing.
After his keynote presentation, Ablaza joined fellow panel discussants, Dr Priyantha Wijayatunga, Senior Director, Energy Sector Office, Sectors Group of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Dr Deven Chhaya, Partner, Infrastructure Advisory of KPMG, and Prof Kai Sang Lock, Head of the Energy Efficiency Technology Centre of the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT). Dr Kee Chun Poon, Head of Climate Change and Sustainability of the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS), Singapore Prime Minister's Office, served as moderator of the first panel discussion. Vincent Low, Founder and Vice President of G-Energy Holdings Pte Ltd and Chairman of the EE Committee of the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS) delivered the opening remarks of the EE session.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) of Singapore and the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS) jointly organized the EE track of ACES 2024, a part of the Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW).
As PE2’s co-founder of APEIA, the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS) is a non-government and non-profit business association that represents the interests and provides a common platform for companies in sustainable energy sector to meet, discuss, collaborate and undertake viable projects together.
Asia Clean Energy Summit (ACES) is Asia’s leading event focusing on clean energy technology, policy and finance supported by leading government agencies, research institutes and industry in Singapore. ACES provide a common platform for regional thought leaders in both the public and private sector to collaborate on critical issues and opportunities in harnessing clean energy for the future. As the regional platform to share and co-create innovative clean energy solutions, ACES supports the vision to be a clean energy hub for Asia.
PE2 and APEIA regularly support the EE track of the annual ACES events.
