Scaling Up Biomass for the Energy Transition: Untapped Opportunities in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia has a strong need to decarbonise its economies and modernise its energy systems. In 2018, around 75% of primary energy demand in the region was met by fossil fuels such as oil, coal and gas.

Whilst all renewable energy sources have a role to play in Southeast Asia’s energy transition, this report focuses on the potential for bioenergy.

The analysis demonstrates an abundance of untapped bioenergy in Southeast Asia, with at least 7.1 EJ of bioenergy per year by 2050 – in the five countries studied (Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam). It also identifies immediate opportunities for adopting bioenergy in Southeast Asia’s energy markets, demonstrating the potential over the medium- and long-term horizons for sustainable biomass to economically meet 2.8 EJ of the energy demand served by fossil fuels saving around 442 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂e) emissions per year by 2050.

Decision makers will play a key role and the report outlines a number of necessary actions to tackle issues such as the sourcing of sustainable bioenergy feedstock and the need to foster collaboration among various stakeholders in the implementation process.