Energy demand in Southeast Asia is set to outpace the rest of the world over the next decade.
Based on today’s policy settings, Southeast Asia is on course to account for 25 per cent of global energy demand growth between now and 2035, second only to India.
By mid-century, energy demand in Southeast Asia will surpass the European Union, according to the SE Asia Energy Outlook Report released this week by the International Energy Agency.
Despite booming demand the region only attracts two per cent of global clean energy investment.
The current level of investment will require a fivefold increase – with $190 billion needed in 2035 – to put the region on a pathway consistent with achieving its announced energy and climate goals.
Expanding and modernising the region’s power grids to support a greater share of variable renewable energy will require annual investment in this space to double to nearly $30 billion by 2035, according to the report.
The population of the region is projected to increase from today’s 685 million to almost 790 million by 2050.
Today, just four countries – Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand – account for more than 80 per cent of the region’s population.
The use of energy for space cooling is growing faster than for any other end use in buildings. More than 16 per cent of all the electricity used in buildings in the region is for space cooling, growing to over 35 per cent in 2050.