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Photo 1. Group photo of the BOJ Meeting in Penang, Malaysia.
(Photo by PETRA)
Penang, 2 June 2025 – The ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) organised the 24th Evaluation Meeting of the Board of Judges (BOJ) for the Renewable Energy (RE) Project Awards of ASEAN Energy Awards 2025. Hosted by the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA) Malaysia, the meeting took place at G Hotel Gurney in Penang, Malaysia, and was attended by representatives from seven (7) ASEAN Member States, the ASEAN Secretariat, and ACE. The productive in-person gathering was made possible through the support of key partners, including the World Bank, which facilitated the participation of many delegates. Discussions aimed to assess the BOJ feedback, finalisation, score submission for all categories, and chart a strategic direction for the improvement of the ASEAN RE Project Awards.
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Photo 2. Koh Keng Sen, COO of SEDA Malaysia & BOJ Chair and Trois Dilisusendi of Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR) Indonesia & BOJ Vice Chair.
(Photos by PETRA)
To commence the event, Koh Keng Sen, Chief Operating Officer of Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) Malaysia & BOJ Chair, delivered opening remarks. He underscored that the RE Project Awards play a role in not only recognising innovation but also showcasing models that support the region’s RE targets. Furthermore, he noted that these awards stand as a testament to the region’s dedication in driving real change for ASEAN’s RE deployment, with this meeting being a critical step in improving the credibility and high standards of the awards.
Following that, Trois Dilisusendi, Coordinator of Investment and Cooperation of Bioenergy Directorate at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Indonesia, also as BOJ Vice Chair, reiterated the importance of this meeting. He underscored ASEAN’s collective commitment to achieving its renewable energy goals, supported by the RE projects submitted for the awards. He thanked the BOJ for their time and expertise in participating this meeting.
Photo 3. Dynta Trishana Munardy, Senior Officer of ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) & Strategic Department at ACE.
The first session of the meeting was moderated by the BOJ Chair. Dynta Trishana Munardy, Senior Officer of ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) & Strategic Department at ACE, provided a summary of this year’s RE Project Awards submissions.
A key point of discussion centred on the award guidelines, particularly the general requirement for projects to have at least one year of operation. The judges deliberated on how to handle innovative pilot projects that may not yet meet this criterion, ultimately agreeing to rely on the BOJ’s consensus for this year’s entries while planning to enhance the guidelines for the future. It was also noted that the Special Submission category was enhanced this year to include three subcategories, allowing each country to submit up to three projects under this main category.
It was followed by a discussion amongst the judges covering critical findings and feedback from the entries of all eight (8) categories, with 47 entries in total.
The discussion was followed by tabulation of scores by ACE. The selected winners and runners-up will be announced at the 43rd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) Awarding Ceremony, held during the 25th ASEAN Energy Business Forum (AEBF-25) in October 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The second session proceeded to discuss the improvement and proposed guidelines for the ASEAN RE Project Awards post-2025. Veronica Ayu Pangestika, Research Analyst of the Sustainable and Renewable Energy (SRE) Department at ACE, delivered a presentation overviewing the ASEAN RE Project Awards 2024 Best Practices report, outlining the trends from 2024 entries of all categories. Recommendations for future awards were presented, such as to refine scoring criteria to emphasise innovation and local adaptation, develop mentorship pipeline for Special Submission projects, and encourage data standardisation.
Photo 3. The 24th Evaluation Meeting of the BOJ for ASEAN RE Project Awards of ASEAN Energy Awards 2025.
(Photo by PETRA)
Building on this, Monika Merdekawati, Senior Research Analyst of SRE Department at ACE, introduced the ASEAN RE Awards for Investment Acceleration Programme, a new strategic initiative under the Accelerating Sustainable Energy Transition – Multi-phase Programmatic Approach (ASET MPA) supported by the World Bank. This programme aims to transform the awards from an annual recognition event into a powerful tool for driving investment and accelerating RE deployment across the region. The programme is built on three core components:
The proposal was well-received by the BOJ, sparking a productive discussion on its design and implementation. Member states welcomed the initiative as a timely and valuable effort. In their feedback, they requested that ACE provide a more detailed concept note on the programme’s design for their review, ensuring its objectives align with national priorities and effectively address the urgent and rapidly evolving challenges of renewable energy financing in the region. The programme is aimed to start on the fourth quarter this year with three years of activities.
The meeting was concluded with a summary presented by Dynta. Koh Keng Sen, as BOJ Chair, provided final closing remarks to wrap-up the meeting. He extended gratitude toward the BOJ for their expertise and input during the meeting and encouraged continued cooperation to enhance the ASEAN RE Project Awards to achieve a sustainable and resilient energy future for ASEAN.
The list of winners and runners-up from the previous ASEAN RE Project Awards is provided at https://aseanenergy.org/in-service/awards/asean-energy-awards/ .
ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) is an intergovernmental organisation within ASEAN structure that represents the 10 ASEAN Member States’ (AMS) interests in the energy sector.