ASEAN Launches School of Regulation To Strengthen Regional Energy Cooperation

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Bernama) -- The ASEAN School of Regulation (ASR) has been officially launched at the 44th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM), marking a major step towards strengthening regulatory capabilities and regional cooperation to support ASEAN’s energy transition and interconnected power systems.

The ASR is a joint initiative of the ASEAN Energy Regulators Network, ASEAN Centre for Energy and the ASEAN Secretariat, in partnership with the Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership of the United Nations Office for Project Services and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

The formal launch session featured opening remarks by ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Datuk Seri Mad Zaidi Mohd Karli, and Secretary of the Department of Energy of the Philippines Sharon S Garin.

“Malaysia, as the host, is committed to providing the continuity and leadership needed to develop the ASR into a sustainable regional institution, while working closely with ASEAN regulators and international partners on collaboration, knowledge sharing and capacity building,” Mad Zaidi said in a joint statement by the parties involved here today.

With an initial focus on power system integration and multilateral electricity trade, the ASR will support the implementation of the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) and other relevant programme areas under the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation 2026-2030.

It also aims to strengthen regulatory clarity, consistency and implementation capabilities across ASEAN member states, creating more predictable conditions for long-term investment in grids, clean energy, energy storage, digitalisation and cross-border energy infrastructure.

The ASR intends to move beyond one-off training towards a sustained regional system for developing regulatory leaders, retaining institutional knowledge and translating shared learning into regulatory action.

Through structured and practice-oriented programmes covering power systems, market design, economic regulation and multilateral power trading, the school will equip regulators with the technical, institutional and leadership capabilities needed to address emerging challenges and advance APG implementation.

Its key outcomes include building and retaining regulatory capabilities, advancing regulatory convergence and interoperability, and creating a regional community of regulatory leaders. Another key target is accelerating solutions to emerging regulatory challenges such as renewable energy integration, system flexibility, storage, digitalisation, tariff and market design.

Malaysia, through the Energy Commission, committed to supporting the hosting of the school in Malaysia during the Special Senior Officials’ Meeting on Energy in January 2026, while UNITEN Research and Development will serve as the host institution, providing the institutional home for the ASR’s permanent secretariat and operational platform.

-- BERNAMA