Photo 1. Dato’ Ir. Ts. Razib Dawood, Executive Director of ACE (left) and Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP (right) during the MoU signing (photo by ESCAP).
Bangkok, 1 September 2025 – The ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) have officially forged a strategic partnership to advance ASEAN’s energy cooperation through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed at the UN Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand, on 1 September 2025. The signing ceremony took place in conjunction with Asia-Pacific Energy Week, hosted by ESCAP, which aims to strengthen regional cooperation through accelerated just energy transitions.
The MoU was signed by Dato’ Ir. Ts. Razib Dawood, Executive Director of ACE, and Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of UN and Executive Secretary of ESCAP, representing their respective organisations.As part of the agreement, this MoU will support the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC), in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7 on Affordable and Clean Energy, and 13 on Climate Action.
ACE and ESCAP will focus on joint initiatives in research and analysis, policy dialogues, capacity buildings, and knowledge sharing across key areas in ASEAN’s energy sector, such as just energy transition, energy security and resilience, investment in green energy transition, sustainable transport, raw materials for sustainable development, and energy connectivity through the ASEAN Power Grid (APG). With ASEAN set to endorse APAEC 2026-2030 and sign the APG Enhanced MoU at the 43rd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) in October 2025, this collaboration marks a critical milestone in further strengthening regional efforts to achieve affordable, reliable, and sustainable access for all ASEAN Member States.
Photo 2. Dato’ Ir. Ts. Razib Dawood, Executive Director of ACE (left) and Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP (right) during the MoU signing (photo by ESCAP).
“The signing of this MoU illustrates ACE and ESCAP’s mutual commitment to supporting the ASEAN energy cooperation,” said Dato’ Ir. Ts. Razib Dawood, Executive Director of ACE. “We are excited about the opportunities this collaboration will bring. With ESCAP’s expertise and regional reach, and ACE’s role in coordinating ASEAN energy cooperation, we believe this partnership will generate impactful initiatives that benefit our communities. ACE extends its gratitude to ESCAP for this important collaboration.”
This partnership illustrates ACE and ESCAP’s joint commitment to advancing regional energy cooperation and supporting ASEAN Member States’ capacity in the transition towards sustainable energy solutions. Through joint initiatives, ACE and ESCAP will assist ASEAN Member States’ efforts in achieving a secure, affordable, and equitable energy transition.
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About the ASEAN Centre for Energy
Established on 1 January 1999, the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) is an intergovernmental organisation within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) structure that represents the 10 ASEAN Member States’ (AMS) interests in the energy sector. ACE supports the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC), a blueprint for the ASEAN energy sector. The Centre is guided by a Governing Council composed of Senior Officials on Energy from each AMS and a representative from the ASEAN Secretariat as an ex-officio member. The three key roles of ACE:
- As a catalyst to unify and strengthen ASEAN energy cooperation and integration by implementing relevant capacity-building programmes and projects to assist the AMS in developing its energy sector.
- As the ASEAN energy data centre and knowledge hub, to provide a knowledge repository for the AMS.
- As an ASEAN energy think tank to assist the AMS by identifying and surfacing innovative solutions for ASEAN’s energy challenges on policies, legal & regulatory frameworks and technologies.
Keeping the region’s improvement, sustainable and harmless to the ecosystem is a fundamental concern of the ASEAN energy sector. Hosted by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia, ACE’s office is located in Jakarta, Indonesia. For more information about ACE, visit our website: https://aseanenergy.org. For further inquiries, please contact:
- Communications Team at ACE – [email protected]
About the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is the most inclusive intergovernmental platform in the Asia-Pacific region. The Commission promotes cooperation among its 53 member States and 9 associate members in pursuit of solutions to sustainable development challenges. ESCAP is one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations.The ESCAP secretariat supports inclusive, resilient and sustainable development in the region by generating action-oriented knowledge, and by providing technical assistance and capacity-building services in support of national development objectives, regional agreements and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.For more information about ESCAP, visit our website: https://www.unescap.org/
