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October 23, 2024 | 03:10 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Dinita Setyawati, a senior analyst of electricity policy across Southeast Asia at Ember, said 3.6 percent of ASEAN's power growth still relies on fossil fuels due to insufficient renewable energy growth in the region.
Indonesia contributed 11 terawatt-hours (TWh) to the coal increase, underscoring its position as the largest coal user with young coal power plants.
Dinita revealed that fossil fuels dominate ASEAN's power plants with 74 percent, with coal contributing 44 percent of them in 2023. Meanwhile, renewable energy contribution dropped to 26 percent last year, a decline from 28 percent in the previous year.
"High dependency on fossil energy made ASEAN carbon emissions increase 6.6 percent to 718 million per CO2 last year. Indonesia and Vietnam are the biggest contributors of the emissions, with the respective contributions of 14 million tons and 20 million tons," she said in a written statement in the latest Ember report titled "ASEAN's Clean Power Pathways: 2024 Insights," received by Tempo on Wednesday, October 23, 2024.
The energy think thank report also estimated that power demand in ASEAN will increase by 41 percent by 2030. Dinita emphasized that ASEAN countries should accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
Furthermore, Dinita stated that ASEAN should seize the opportunity to diversify energy as solar energy costs fall by 55 to 81 percent and wind by 33 to 35 percent. This could certainly become a solution to meet the growth in power demand while achieving climate crisis management targets.
The report offers a solution for cross-border electricity development in solar and wind energy. For example, the solar power capacity in the Malaysian Peninsula and Singapore peaked at 20 percent from January to April. This aligns with the wind power plant capacity in Indonesia, which reached 30 percent from May to October.
Currently, out of 18 cross-border electricity network plans, eight networks have been constructed and allow electricity exports up to 7.7 gigawatts (GW). The power network connecting Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore is a significant milestone in ASEAN's regional energy cooperation. The next targeted ASEAN Power Grid is a cross-country network of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
"The ASEAN transition to renewable energy promises to open new jobs, strong energy resilience, and economic growth. Joint efforts through interconnected programs and international cooperation offer solutions for various challenges faced by the region," said Dinita.
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