Dr Nuki Agya Utama has been appointed the first head of the Asia Zero Emission Centre, formed last month to advance clean energy planning for a coalition of 11 Asia Pacific countries.
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Nuki called time at the Asean Centre for Energy last month after five years as the think tank’s executive director. He remains in Jakarta, Indonesia, under the new appointment.
The Asia Zero Emission Centre is hosted under the Economic Research Institute for Asean and East Asia. It will focus on Australia, Japan and nine Southeast Asia countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The grouping includes all countries under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) except Myanmar.
“This new position offers a tremendous opportunity to drive impactful change across Asia, advancing our collective efforts towards a sustainable, zero-emission future,” said Nuki on LinkedIn of his new role.
“As I reflect on my time at [the Asean Centre for Energy], I am reminded that true progress is born from partnerships, dedication, and a shared vision for a better tomorrow. The past years have been marked by strong collaborations and meaningful partnerships with Asean member states, dialogue partner countries and international organisations,” he added.
Nuki’s appointment to lead the Asia Zero Emission Centre comes a year after its member countries came together in an initiative first mooted by Japan. He said the organisation will cover decarbonisation in sectors such as power, transport and industry, leveraging schemes like carbon trading and green finance.
Ministers from the 11 member countries had met last month, and said they would jointly look into clean energy technologies such as sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen and carbon capture. A joint communique noted that natural gas will play an “important role” as a transition fuel, and acknowledged some members may opt to cooperate on using nuclear energy.
Both Japan and Australia are betting big on clean hydrogen fuel to replace its fossil-based energy sources. Japan has been warming up to nuclear power, over a decade after its Fukushima nuclear plant accident caused by a tsunami and earthquake.
The Asean Centre for Energy has not announced who will be its new executive director. Nuki told Eco-Business that his successor will hail from Malaysia. Meanwhile, Beni Suryadi, previously manager of two clean energy workstreams, is taking on an acting executive director role.
Southeast Asia has been struggling to scale up the adoption of renewables, despite high solar and wind potential in countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia. The region is also keen to scale up production and use of natural gas, to the disappointment of environmentalists who regard the fuel as expensive and still too pollutive.
