Photo 1. Group photo with all the participant

The ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), in partnership with the Energy Efficiency Centre Japan (ECCJ) hosted a Carbon Neutrality Diagnosis Interim Meeting virtually on 20 February 2024, as part of the ASEAN-Japan Energy Efficiency Partnership (AJEEP) programme, supported by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan. The meeting aimed to discuss the results of Carbon Neutrality (CN) diagnosis at the selected Industry and Building and share the outline of CN project promotion startup meeting.

The CN diagnosis is an activity under AJEEP scheme 5 with the objective of disseminating and promoting the adoption of advanced energy efficiency and carbon neutrality technologies in the sectors of the industry, transportation and commercial buildings within ASEAN. This programme aligned with the goals of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) Phase II in achieving a 32% reduction in energy intensity by 2025.

 Photo 2. Dr. Ambiyah Abdullah from ACE as the moderator

Dr. Ambiyah Abdullah, Senior Officer of the Modelling and Policy Planning (MPP) Department at ACE, served as the moderator for the meeting. The meeting commenced with opening remarks from Motofusa Murakami, Managing Director at ECCJ. He reaffirmed ECCJ’s unwavering commitment and ongoing efforts to disseminate Japan’s advanced CN technologies throughout the ASEAN region. Followed by Septia Buntara Supendi, Acting Manager of the Conservation and Energy Efficiency (CEE) Department at ACE, emphasised the critical role of the carbon neutrality diagnosis program as an effective tool to assess the current state of the ASEAN region.

Photo 3. Nawawi Muhdhayub from Nitto Denko Materials Malaysia during his presentation

The presentation session was started by Nawawi Muhdhayub from Nitto Denko Materials Malaysia, sharing the CN diagnosis results at his company which was conducted in September 2023. He discussed the methodology, project scope, result of the preliminary survey, and result of the field survey. Some recommendations and proposal plan for energy saving, decarbonisation, and energy conservation were introduced along with the estimated CO₂ reduction potential.

Photo 4. Atchariya Jangcha from DEDE Thailand during his presentation

Atchariya Jangchai, engineer at the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency (DEDE) of Thailand, presented the CN diagnosis results for Phra Nang Klao Public Hospital. The diagnosis was done in November 2023 and he identified air conditioning as a primary contributor to the hospital’s energy consumption. Consequently, a key recommendation focused on implementing energy-saving air conditioning systems, such as Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) technology.

Photo 5. Takashi Kanazawa from ECCJ during his presentation

Takashi Kanazawa, technical expert at ECCJ, presented a review and insights on the outline of CN project promotion startup meeting. He highlighted the timeline for CN project promotion, including setting the target Setting of CO₂ reduction for the next 5-15 years, finding the problem & the measures, calculating CO₂ reduction with emission factor, and setting the medium to long term plan. He further explained that the widespread application of CN technologies within the industry sector will likely take considerable time.

Photo 6. Mardika Firlina from ACE during her presentation

Concluding the presentation session, Mardika Firlina, Associate Officer of CEE Department at ACE, shared some key takeaways from the discussion, including future plan to expand CN diagnosis to two Industries and two buildings across ASEAN. She also highlighted the potential schedule of activities under the AJEEP Scheme 5 in the next project’s Financial Year.

As a closing statement, Motofusa Murakami from ECCJ expressed his sincere appreciation to all presenters for their valuable efforts in sharing the outcomes of the carbon neutrality diagnoses. He emphasized the potential of applying cutting-edge Japanese technologies to address the identified challenges, paving the way for a more sustainable future.