Jakarta. Energy expert Fabbi Tumiva said on Tuesday that ASEAN should develop its own solar photovoltaic power plant as the technology will become a global hotspot in the future.
Indonesia's ASEAN chair is expected to advance negotiations on the solar PV supply chain at the bloc's upcoming ministerial meetings, Fabby said. ASEAN is currently experiencing rapid growth in energy demand. The Southeast Asian bloc must also have at least 241 gigawatts of installed solar photovoltaic capacity by 2030 to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Countries around the world are turning to solar photovoltaic panels as they move towards renewable energy.
“ASEAN should build its own solar photovoltaic panel factory to provide access to this key technology for decarbonization and energy security. Such an installation is necessary because solar PV panels will become a scarce commodity among countries as many countries move towards decarbonization,” said Fabbi, executive director of the IESR think tank, at the 2023 ASEAN Solar Summit in Jakarta on Tuesday.
“Southeast Asia is expected to provide affordable access to this technology by creating a production and supply chain for solar PV systems, including polysilicon, ingots, wafers, cells and other components. Southeast Asia has the potential to become a manufacturing hub for solar PV panels that will meet domestic and global demand,” Fabbi said at the forum.
At present, seven ASEAN countries have established their respective solar module factories, albeit to varying degrees, with a total production capacity of 70 gigawatts. These are Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, the Philippines and Singapore.
Vietnam accounts for nearly half of ASEAN's total solar generation capacity, reaching 34 gigawatts. Hanoi has quite an extensive supply chain which includes plates, cells and modules. The production capacity of solar modules in Indonesia is only 1.6 gigawatts. Malaysia is the only ASEAN country that supplies silicon, another key ingredient for solar cell production, Fabby said.
“China is the leader in Asia, where the production capacity of solar photovoltaic modules reaches nearly 400 gigawatts. India's generation capacity is currently 40 to 50 gigawatts, but is expected to grow to around 125 gigawatts by 2025. Next is Southeast Asia,” Fabbi said.
The United States and Europe could be potential export markets for solar technologies. For example, Vietnam already exports its solar panels to the United States because the United States is reducing imports from China. Fabby added, "although many Chinese companies are relocating production to Vietnam."
Tags: Keywords:
