Illustrative photo (Photo: VNA) Jakarta (VNA) – The ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) and the Southeast Asia Smart Power Programme (SPP) under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on June 22 signed an agreement to advance regional clean energy priorities.
The signing ceremony took place within the framework of the 14th ASEAN-US Senior Officials Meeting on Energy (SOME-US) held at the headquarters of the ASEAN Secretariat, emphasising the strong commitment of ASEAN member states to promote clean energy transition in the region.
Earlier, speaking at the opening of the 41st ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Energy (SOME), Indonesia's Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Arifin Tasrif called on countries to join international organisations and stakeholders to support and cooperate to foster innovative partnerships, inclusive finance, and access to the necessary and effective technologies to accelerate the energy transition.
For his part, Director General of Electricity of the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Jisman Hutajulu highly appreciated the ASEAN-US partnership agreement on supporting sustainable energy development. He emphasised the need to tap into the abundant and diverse energy resources in the ASEAN region to meet the growing demand.
According to Jissman, the partnership with USAID through the SPP will help ACE strengthen the region's electricity system by promoting energy trade and increasing the deployment of clean energy technologies. This partnership reflects ASEAN's commitment to the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and the ASEAN Action Plan on Energy Cooperation (APAEC), towards a sustainable energy future. Through this partnership, ACE and USAID aim to accelerate the implementation of APAEC Phase 2 (2021-2025) for the sustainable energy transition in the region.
ACE Chief Executive Officer Nuki Agya Utama affirmed that this three-year partnership is pivotal to achieving the region's 2025 goals and equips ACE with the tools and resources needed to accelerate the implementation of APAEC, thereby promoting clean and reliable energy, as well as efforts to combat climate change.
Nuki said that the partnership agreement with USAID-SPP also marks an important milestone in ACE's efforts to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable and resilient energy future in Southeast Asia, and affirms ACE's commitment to driving positive change and creating a lasting impact on the region's energy transition./.
