(Nov 13): EDP SA is planning to invest up to US$2 billion on renewable energy and battery projects in Asia through 2030, even as the company pulls out of some less promising markets in the region.
“We have been undergoing a trimming down of markets which were options, but that are not materialising at the speed and at the scale that we actually need,” said Pedro Vasconcelos, executive board member at EDP overseeing the APAC region. That will “allow us then to double down on Singapore, Australia, Japan”.
EDP Renewables, the utility’s green energy arm, was in 10 Asian markets two years ago, but has since left several, including Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia and South Korea, Miguel Fonseca, chief executive officer of EDPR’s APAC operations, told reporters. Some of these countries lacked regulatory maturity, clarity on permitting, credible counter-parties, and bankable price and scale, he said.
The move comes as Southeast Asia, a fast-growing, coal-heavy region, struggles to shake its dependence on fossil fuels and keep pace with the clean power rollout seen in other parts of the world. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is set to miss its goal of having renewables make up 23% of the energy mix by 2025, as investment lags and bureaucratic hurdles persist.
“For different reasons, either more favouring local players or regulation that doesn’t really give us the visibility that we want to put 30-year investments, something hasn’t clicked yet,” said Vasconcelos. “But the potential is for sure there.”
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