The Honourable Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Retired) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II, and The Honurable Dato Seri Setia Dr. Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew Abdullah, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II, jointly attended the inaugural Ministerial Interface Meeting on Financial Mechanism for ASEAN Power Grid which convened virtually on 14th August 2025.
Also in attendance were Yang Mulia Hajah Farida binti Dato Seri Paduka Haji Talib, Permanent Secretary (Energy) at the Prime Minister’s Office; Yang Mulia Mohammad Harris bin Brigadier General (Retired) Dato Paduka Haji Ibrahim, Acting Permanent Secretary (Economy, Trade and Industry) at the Ministry of Finance and Economy; Yang Mulia Awang Haji Asrul Adrain bin Pehin Orang Kaya Setia Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Dr. Haji Ahmad, Acting Permanent Secretary (Fiscal) at the Ministry of Finance and Economy; and officials from the Department of Energy at the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Finance and Economy.
The Meeting was chaired by Dato' Sri Haji Fadillah bin Haji Yusof from Malaysia as Chair of the ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM), and co-chaired by Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, Chair of the ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM); Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan and Dato’ Sri Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour, Co-Chairs of the ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting (AFMGM).
The Meeting serves as a strategic policy dialogue to align sectoral priorities for a more integrated, sustainable, and resilient energy future in ASEAN. It highlighted the role of the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) in advancing the ASEAN 2045 vision by promoting multilateral power trade, recognizing its potential to accelerate energy transitions, unlock renewable energy resources, and bolster energy security. These initiatives are set to strengthen economic resilience, contributing to a more competitive and sustainable ASEAN economy.
To accelerate the realisation of APG, the Ministers highlighted the potential role of the ASEAN Power Grid Financing Initiative (APGF), being developed with the support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank (WB), as an important financing coordination initiative.
During the meeting, the Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II acknowledged the APG as a key pillar of regional energy cooperation, enhancing cross-border electricity trade, system reliability, and renewable energy integration. The key learnings from the progress made through projects such as the Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project (LTMS-PIP) will be able to guide the development of future interconnections, including the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines (BIMP-PIP) projects. On this note, Brunei Darussalam also reaffirmed its commitment to the APG vision, especially in realising the cross-border power interconnection project between Brunei Darussalam and Sarawak. All in all, these efforts support a broader energy agenda that diversifies the energy mix, strengthens system resilience, and ensures reliable and affordable power for the region.
Meanwhile, the Honourable Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II reaffirmed support for the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) by underscoring the importance of affordable, sustainable, and reliable energy in enhancing intra-ASEAN trade, attracting investments, and strengthening regional competitiveness towards deeper ASEAN economic integration. The Honourable Minister welcomed the continued support from Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), particularly the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, for the proposed ASEAN Power Grid Financing Initiative (APGF).
The Honourable Minister has also expressed appreciation for the Initiative’s role in mobilizing financing, providing advisory and technical support to develop bankable projects, and enhancing the capacities and capabilities of stakeholders. These efforts must be reinforced by upstream support in fostering a conducive environment underpinned by strong policy coherence across the energy, trade, investment, and financial sectors to maximize impact. The Honourable Minister recognized that energy security is a regional public good and emphasized the importance of ensuring equitable access to resources under the APGF for all ASEAN Member States, so as to avoid implementation gaps in APG projects that could hinder shared progress. Close coordination with individual ASEAN Member States is also necessary to identify support based on their individual needs. The Honourable Minister took note of the proposal to expand the APGF to enable broader participation of MDBs and private fund, which has been incorporated under the proposed establishment of the Partnership for ASEAN Connectivity on Energy (PACE). In this regard, the Honourable Minister further encouraged the APGF to leverage sub-regional cooperation such as BIMP-EAGA to help realize the APG and advance the vision of a competitive and integrated ASEAN Single Market as outlined in the AEC Blueprint 2045.
The Meeting also adopted the Joint Media Statement of the Ministerial Interface Meeting on Financial Mechanisms for the ASEAN Power Grid. It was attended by all ASEAN Member States, with the support of the ASEAN Secretariat. Timor-Leste also attended in their capacity as an observer.
