Jakarta. ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn is confident that the bloc will ratify the deal for the regional oil-sharing mechanism no later than November, as Southeast Asia navigates the Iran war fallout. 

The group’s recent talks in Cebu were buzzing with talks of ratifying the ASEAN Petroleum Security Agreement (APSA). In short, the pact will enable ASEAN economies to supply oil to fellow member states in need at times of disruptions. Kao told a press briefing that the bloc had “all the mechanisms in place” to address energy shortages, citing the APSA. There was also a mutual understanding to ratify the deal “as quickly as possible”.

When asked by the Jakarta Globe about the specific timeline, Kao signaled the likelihood of the ratification taking place before the leaders gather again in the Philippines in mid-November for the 49th ASEAN Summit. This process also hinges on the domestic lawmaking processes.

"They have to get back to their parliaments to get this cleared domestically as quickly as possible. I can’t give you a timeframe, but of course, I’m sure it should be done within … there is no doubt it will be done before the 49th ASEAN Summit. I hope very much,” Kao said at the group's secretariat in Jakarta.

The pecking order for which ASEAN country gets access to the emergency fuel remains subject to further discussions. Kao confirmed that talks of setting up a regional “energy stockpile” had gained a lot of attention and priority from the leaders.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is now the group’s chairman, had said that there were many things that needed to be ironed out regarding the APSA, including the location of the storage.

“The principle was immediately unanimously agreed upon, but how do we do it? Is it going to be in one single place or scattered [across] the whole ASEAN? How do we share the [reserves]?” Marcos told reporters in Cebu on Friday.

He went on to say that ASEAN nations would not “waste time with bureaucratic nonsense” for countries to actually start sharing the much-needed fuel.

Indonesia views the APSA as something that ASEAN "must implement", according to Sugiono, citing the region's heavy reliance on imports.

The Philippines was the first country to declare an energy emergency as the Iran war cut fuel supplies. The fighting has brought the traffic via the Strait of Hormuz to a standstill as Tehran closed the waterway in retaliation for US-Israeli airstrikes in late February. Manila estimated that ASEAN had imported 66% of its crude, making the region particularly exposed to any disruptions.

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