THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank will invest $10 billion and $2.5 billion, respectively, to support the Asean Power Grid (APG) — an initiative of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) members to accelerate regional power connectivity through collaboration and innovative financing solutions. The APG aims to connect the region, first on cross-border bilateral terms, gradually expand to subregional basis, and lead to a fully integrated Asean power grid system by the year 2045, as well as the fulfillment of the 2030 United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. The ADB and World Bank pledges were mentioned in a joint media statement from a virtual Ministerial Interface Meeting on Financial Mechanisms for the APG on Aug. 14, attended by officials from all Asean member states, with the support of the Asean Secretariat. Timor-Leste attended as an observer. The ADB, according to the statement, will invest “up to $10 billion of its own resources over the next decade in support of the APG, including cross-border interconnections and other APG-related investments (domestic grid strengthening and renewable energy for power export).” Meanwhile, the World Bank's $2.50-billion share will come from its “Accelerating Sustainable Energy Transition Multi-Phase Programmatic Approach” program, previously “approved in 2024, to ramp up renewable energy and promote power trade across the region.” The meeting recognized “the shared benefits of multilateral power trade to all parties by accelerating Asean's energy transitions through investments in renewable energy projects, unlocking the region's abundant renewable energy potential and enhancing energy security.” Also discussed were existing power interconnection projects, such as the Lao PDR-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project and the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines Power Integration Project, as part of pursuing the APG. https://www.manilatimes.net/2025/08/18/business/top-business/adb-wb-to-invest-125b-in-asean-grid/2169185 (ICE SINGAPORE)

Fonte notizia: The Manila Times, 18 August 2025