The verdict will be delivered on May 10.

This update provides an overview of the renewable energy landscape in the region and certain salient legal and regulatory issues affecting the development and deployment of RE in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) is joining forces with Singapore to establish its first regional office outside Paris, named the Regional Cooperation Centre, with operations expected to commence in the second half of 2024. 

On 8 December 2023, the Ministry of Trade and Industry issued a press release announcing that Singapore and Papua New Guinea signed an implementation agreement on carbon credits cooperation under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. This marks the first implementation agreement for Singapore. The Agreement sets out a legally binding framework and processes for the generation and international transfer of carbon credits aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, between Singapore and Papua New Guinea.

This article aims to provide an overview on the licensing regime for electric vehicles (“EV”) charging operators (“EVCOs”) and certification requirements that EV chargers would have to meet under the Electric Vehicles Charging Act 2022, which aims to regulate devices intended for charging EVs, operators of charging stations and providers of charging services for EVs.

The Nusantara Capital Authority (OIKN) and Pertamina New & Renewable Energy (Pertamina NRE) recently entered into a joint study agreement during the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Dubai to support nature- and ecosystem-based solutions (NEBS).

Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has highlighted the need to address certain issues with the recently approved National Power Development Plan 8 (PDP8).

Companies in Vietnam are being urged to prioritise environmental sustainability and renewable energy in response to the impacts of climate change.

Malaysia's National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) was launched with the aim of attracting investments ranging from RM435 billion to RM1.85 trillion by 2050.

The Asean Power Grid (APG) has the potential to aid Southeast Asian countries in meeting their decarbonisation goals by interconnecting their electricity grids.

Experts have stated that Malaysia is not expected to be significantly impacted by volatility in the global oil market due to its status as a net oil exporter.

Experts are calling for a review of Malaysia's policies and regulatory framework on renewable energy (RE) to ensure an efficient and sustainable energy mix in the long term.

Thailand’s energy authorities are anticipated to launch a new national power development plan (PDP) in a bid to better promote and support the greater utilisation of renewable energy.

The Jakarta provincial government is planning to utilise solar energy at 31 public facilities in the capital city in an effort to support energy efficiency and eco-friendliness in 2023.

Indonesia’s Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati has stated that the just and affordable principle would be essential in the energy transition, and as such, the Conference of the Parties (COP) on climate change would be carrying on discussing the principle.

Soaring power bills would be a key factor that would push businesses in the manufacturing sector to the need to actively adopt renewable energy in order to relieve the increase in their production costs, which has been estimated to be at 4.88% on average, according to Thailand’s Industry Ministry.

Malaysia’s Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) has revealed its interest in exploring and participating in the creation and operation of energy solutions in the new Indonesia capital, Nusantara.

According to Malaysia’s Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, the Malaysian government would provide the necessary support to shape the policies to create a conducive ecosystem in the country’s transition to cleaner forms of energy.

Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) has stated that it would work to ensure that the electricity supply in Malaysia would remain reliable despite the energy crisis, as energy remained the primary infrastructure that would shape economic growth, in particular when gaining access to post-pandemic opportunities.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) resident representative Ramla Khalidi highlighted that for an economy such as Vietnam, international financing would only provide a supplemental source of capital for the country, with most of the investment requirements needing to be met by domestic sources. As a result, increasing the capacity of the domestic financial institutions to mobilise long-term capital needs to be at the core of the climate transition.