[WEBCAST] Energy Investments: Is Southeast Asia Moving From Coal Towards Renewables?
VIEW EVENT DETAILSIEEFA’s Sara Jane Ahmed and NRDC’s Han Chen Discussing Southeast Asia’s Energy Transition
Energy demand in Southeast Asia – one of the world’s most vibrant and fast-growing economic regions – is rapidly increasing. Energy consumption has doubled in the past two decades and the vast majority of new demand has been met by fossil fuel use. Countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines have become ever more dependent on coal plants, whose construction to a large extent rely on foreign investments from Japan, China and South Korea. At the same time, Southeast Asia possesses extraordinary renewable energy resources, with many countries having already benefited from their falling costs.
With the global investment landscape changing to minimize financial jeopardy from climate risks, what are the key energy trends emerging in Southeast Asia? What are the main dynamics to be observed in Southeast Asian countries? To what extent do these depend on European investments? Is Covid-19 accelerating the transition towards clean energy? And what are the main concerns and opportunities around renewable energy investments?
To answer these and other questions, register for the webcast with Sara Jane Ahmed, energy finance analyst for the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) in the Philippines, and the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) Han Chen, who will be joining us as moderator and expert on the topic.
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Sara Jane Ahmed is an energy finance analyst for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) in the Philippines. She is the author of several studies on island grid transition to renewables, coal stranded asset risk, rooftop solar and auctions. She is a former investment advisor specializing in originating and structuring energy opportunities in emerging markets.
Han Chen manages Natural Resources Defense Council's (NRDC) work to promote a global energy transition and address climate change at the international level—especially in key countries like the United States, China, India, and Canada. Her work covers the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations and implementation of the Paris Agreement, global financing and deployment of renewables, and limits to the expansion of high-carbon energy sources. Prior to joining NRDC, Chen was a researcher at the Brookings Institution. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies from American University and a master’s degree in international development from Beijing’s Tsinghua University.