Dr. Nuki Agya Utama

Director

Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia

Nuki Agya Utama is a prominent energy expert currently serving as the Head of the Asia Zero Emission Center (AZE Center) at ERIA. Previously, he was the Executive Director of the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE). In this role, he played a pivotal part in advancing regional energy cooperation and sustainability through high-impact collaborations with international organisations such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF), USAID, the World Bank, and governments from Norway, the US, Japan, Germany, Russia, and France. His expertise encompasses renewable energy, energy efficiency, and green design, and he holds advisory positions at the Asia Pacific Energy Research Centre (APERC) and the UN ESCAP.

With a PhD in Environment and Energy Technology, Nuki Agya Utama has held key positions in both academia and industry, including a role at NIKE Inc. He has also completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Kyoto University and, early in his career, worked with the UN Environment Programme and the UN Development Programme.

Session Overview

Thursday, 7 November

11:30

Voices of Tomorrow ICC Hall B 11:30 - 12:00

View Session

Navigating the energy systems transition in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asian countries face a tough challenge in transitioning their energy systems, mainly because they rely heavily on coal, need more power and transport, and have different levels of industrialisation, resources, and energy infrastructure. This makes it hard to reduce emission intensity, especially as economic growth demands more energy. To strike a balance between growth and sustainability, developing nations must work together through regional collaboration, international cooperation, and sharing best practices and innovative solutions like electric transport, renewable energy, and energy efficiency improvements. They must also consider how to ensure fairness for workers, businesses, and consumers by providing access to capacity, finance, products, services, and affordable energy.

Attendee insights:

Understand the unique challenges Southeast Asian countries are facing in the energy transition and gain insights on strategies and technologies being deployed to tackle high emission intensity in growing economies.