Communication Strategy Development for Clean, Affordable and Secure Energy for Southeast Asia (CASE)
An alliance of global partnerships, formed to support Southeast Asia in its transition to a clean, affordable and safe energy supply system.
Southeast Asia (SEA) is one of the fastest developing regions in the world with an energy demand projected to grow by 70% by 2040 and, with approx. 130 GW of coal-fired power plants planned or under construction, it is one of the last regions in the world still looking into deploying coal projects at a large scale. The four countries part of this IKI program represent today around 80% of the total energy share in the SEA region, about 72% of its GDP, and 82% of its population. The future energy development of those countries will therefore have a major impact on the ability of the region to meet its development goals while ensuring a clean, secure, and affordable power supply.
Indonesia as one of the four target countries has already defined a set of climate and energy targets. In its NDC commitment, Indonesia has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 29% (unconditionally) and by 41% with international support by 2030. Based on the BAU scenario in 2030, energy will be the highest contributor with almost quadrupling 2010 emission. A joint report from New Climate Institute and the Energy Research Centre of The Netherlands (ECN) rate the NDC as highly insufficient. Therefore, a more ambitious objective would be needed to achieve the global UNFCCC scenario.
The programme “Clean, Affordable and Secure Energy for Southeast Asia” (CASE) aims to drive change in the power sector in SEA towards increased ambitions with regards to climate change. It focuses on the four main SEA countries including Indonesia in terms of energy demand and also foresees regional activities.
Anchored in Indonesia with the political partner “Ministry of National Development Planning”, with support of a country implementation team and international partners, CASE will propose evidence-based solutions to the challenges met by decision-makers in the design and implementation of the energy system of the future and build societal support around those solutions. A joint fact-finding approach will be applied, involving expert analysis and dialogue to work towards consensus by narrowing areas of disagreement.
CASE will also support dialogue and coordination in the Indonesian power sector, provides technical and policy support, and facilitate dialogue around a new energy vision. Through these activities, CASE will directly contribute to the transition of the power sector towards an innovative, economically successful, and environmentally friendly model for SEA. CASE functions as an aligned programme to the SEA Energy Transition Partnership (SEA ETP).
The objective of CASE is to improve the understanding of energy transition issues in SEA and to support the development of tools and arguments to accelerate the implementation of a switch to RE based energy system. This will allow the following long-term impacts:
- A well-designed clean energy supply system facilitated by the evidence and tools developed by CASE will provide reliable and cost-effective electricity to societies. Due to the decentralized nature of renewable technologies, access to energy for remote areas will also be made easier.
- The increasing share of RE will limit the consumption of fossil fuels. This will reduce GHG emissions to the levels required to meet the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement and allow other positive environmental impacts such as reduced air pollution, land degradation, and – in some regions – water consumption.
In the long run, this will also positively impact public finance allocation and redirect investment towards sustainable energy alternatives and systems. Eventually, the socio-economic effects associated with this transition will also be positive. RE markets will create new and sustainable jobs in the energy sector and will contribute to the development of a new local industry.