ASEAN adopts action plan for increasing renewable electricity to 45% share by 2030

As part of its efforts to transition to renewable energy, the Southeast Asian regional bloc ASEAN endorsed a plan that will increase the share from renewable electricity to 45% over the next 5 years.

Malaysia's Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation announced in a Thursday statement that the plan would increase the share of renewables to 30% of its primary energy supply.

On Thursday, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states endorsed the 2026-2030 ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation.

Plan also includes a goal to boost efficiency, by reducing the amount of energy used per unit of economic expansion - called energy intensity – by 40% compared to 2005.

In a previous plan for 2016-2025 the bloc had aimed to increase the share of renewables to 23% of total primary energy by 2025 and to 35% in terms of the power generation capacity.

The goal was to reduce energy intensity by 32 percent compared to 2005.

Malaysia is the current chair of ASEAN. (Reporting and editing by David Stanway; Sudarshan Varadan and Ashley Tang)

(source: Reuters)