Jakarta. Indonesia has just kicked off its 2023 ASEAN chairmanship in the energy sector, and the bloc's chair immediately brought the group's attention to the tens of trillions of dollars required to run entirely on renewables.

"ASEAN countries need accessible low-carbon technologies and low-interest financing from multiple sources to achieve their net zero targets," Energy Minister Arifin Tasrif said at the 2023 ASEAN energy chairmanship opening ceremony in Jakarta on Friday.

"An IRENA report shows that ASEAN will need $29.4 trillion up to 2050 for a 100-percent renewable power generation. That is why we need financing from developed economies and global financial institutions such as the JETP [Just Energy Transition Partnership] and the Asia Zero Emission Community," Arifin said.

ASEAN has set a goal to achieve 23 percent renewables share in its total primary energy supply and 35 percent in installed power capacity by 2025. Member states are also expected to achieve their nationally determined contributions by 2030, and eventually net zero emissions by 2050. 

Chair Indonesia also wants all ASEAN member countries to declare their net zero emission targets at the 41st ministerial meeting on energy this August.

"Our joint commitment will become the building block for our ASEAN net zero emission roadmap,” Arifin said. 

“[This roadmap] will serve as an action plan for a just, affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy transition that leaves no one behind, in accordance with the social and economic conditions, as well as the priorities of the respective ASEAN countries,” he added.

Arifin claimed that ASEAN had 17,000 gigawatts of renewable energy potential. 

Some ASEAN members, including Indonesia, are blessed with abundant critical minerals — a mainstay for clean energy technologies such as electric vehicles. Arifin said, “we need joint efforts to build the downstream industry in the ASEAN region.”

The minister earlier was referring to a IRENA-ACE joint study on ASEAN's energy outlook. 

The IRENA-ACE study also lays out less ambitious scenarios. 

According to the study, a 90-percent renewable power generation requires $28.1 trillion up to 2050. The report also came up with a Transforming Energy Scenario (TES), which considers readily available technologies at the expense of higher emissions. The total energy system costs for TES amount to $27 trillion.

ASEAN has also recently launched an updated version of the ASEAN Taxonomy, which helps guide capital into the region’s energy transition projects, including coal phase-out.

Read More: ASEAN Taxonomy Expected to Attract Coal Phase-Out Financing

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