Asean governments must lead with strong leadership and planning for the region's clean energy grid, or they risk wasting billions of dollars on stranded renewable energy investments, an economist warns.
While the region's goal of achieving a clean, green, and integrated energy system by 2050 is "bold and achievable", the success of this transformation hinges on effective government coordination and leadership, according to economist Jeffrey D Sachs, director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University.
"Without planning and government leadership, a lot of investment gets made, but it doesn’t lead to a grid,” Sachs said via video call during the Asean Energy Business Forum (AEBF) on Wednesday.
“That’s what we’re seeing now in Europe and the US — renewable energy projects that are not connected because there’s no integrated planning,” he highlighted.
Sachs stressed that Asean must avoid repeating these mistakes by developing a unified framework that connects all 10 member states through a robust Asean Power Grid (APG), rather than proceeding "step by step", as previously suggested.
“This is no longer the age of mere experimentation or trying out things. This is the age of bold implementation and scale,” he asserted.
In contrast to Asean's potential, Sachs criticised the US for what he described as its political failure to commit to the green transformation under President Donald Trump, saying the country risks “falling further behind” China and Asean in renewable energy leadership.
“This really isn’t about the science. This is about lobbying and politics inside the US,” he said, referring to the recent moves by American automakers to scale back electric vehicle or EV production.
On Malaysia, Sachs said the country is well-positioned to lead in EV manufacturing, solar photovoltaic (PV) exports and sustainable mining of rare earth minerals. “Malaysia is already a major automobile producer. It needs to become a major competitive EV producer in the coming years,” he said, suggesting that partnerships with Chinese firms could strengthen local capabilities.
Follow China's lead and go beyond Asean
According to Sachs, Asean’s path towards net-zero emissions by 2050 requires a holistic plan covering generation, transmission, financing, and downstream uses such as hydrogen production and electric transport.
He recommended that Asean adopt a policy stance similar to China's approach, where a single overarching framework guides multiple national or sectoral initiatives.
Sachs also proposed a bold interconnection of power systems that expands beyond the region to include the 15-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) countries such as China, Japan, Korea, and Australia.
He said such an integration could bring “huge mutual benefits” through shared transmission networks, including submarine cables connecting Indonesia to Australia and beyond.
“The Asean Power Grid has been discussed for more than 20 years. It’s time for a thorough implementation,” Sachs said. He called for the deployment of high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission lines to move renewable power efficiently across the region.
Source: theedgemalaysia