Foreword
By Singapore Sustainable Finance Association.
With an estimated investment need of approximately US$800 billion across generation and transmission systems, the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) represents one of the largest infrastructure undertakings in the region’s history. Delivering it at scale will require more than political commitment or engineering capability. It will require a shared understanding of how each component, such as commercial structures, legal frameworks, and risk allocation, must evolve to convert regional energy ambitions into projects that capital providers can finance. This paper seeks to democratise that understanding by examining what it takes in practice to make cross-border power projects investable, replicable, and scalable.
The paper examines a select set of critical commercial and legal factors that are key drivers of project bankability. It investigates gaps that need to be resolved to move the Singapore–Malaysia and Singapore–Indonesia corridors from political intent toward commercial viability. By doing so, the paper lays a shared starting point that is accessible and practical, providing a clear view of what bankability requires in practice.
Acknowledgements
This publication was developed by the Singapore Sustainable Finance Association (SSFA). SSFA collaborates across the financial sector and real economy to support the growth of Singapore as a trusted, vibrant, and inclusive sustainable finance centre.
The project was led by Mike Ng (Group Chief Sustainability Officer, OCBC), with Baringa, and Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Lee & Lee as knowledge partners. The project team consists of the following representatives:
| Organisation | Name | Designation |
|---|---|---|
| OCBC | Mike Ng | Group Chief Sustainability Officer |
| Teo Vincent | Managing Director, Group Sustainability | |
| Ng Lay San | Managing Director, Group Sustainability | |
| Baringa | Jennifer Tay | Partner |
| Darren Yong | Partner | |
| Saumya Rao | Director | |
| Zhen-Hui Eng | Director | |
| Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Lee & Lee | Matt Bubb | Head of Infrastructure, Energy, Resources and Projects (APAC) |
| Trinity International (Formerly Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Lee & Lee) | Stephen Clugston | Partner (Formerly Counsel, Infrastructure, Energy, Resources and Projects) |
SSFA would like to extend our sincere appreciation to all those who have provided their views and insights and contributed their input to the development of this publication, including:
| Contributors | ||
|---|---|---|
| ASEAN Centre for Energy Ambiyah Abdullah, Senior Economist, Energy Modelling and Policy Planning Ignatius Primadi Limin, Senior Officer, Power Generation and Interconnection Nadhilah Shani, Manager, Power Generation and Interconnection Reza Edriawan, Special Officer to the Executive Director |
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| Asia Clean Energy Coalition Mia Nguyen, Chief of Staff Henry Eu, Head of Policy & Development, Southeast Asia |
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| Asian Development Bank | ||
| BlackRock | ||
| British High Commission, Singapore | ||
| DBS Bank Ltd Kelvin Wong, Chief Sustainability Officer |
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| Global Infrastructure Facility, World Bank Group Jade Shu Yu Wong, Senior Infrastructure Finance Specialist |
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| Gurīn Energy Ho Kian Chong, Director and Co-Head (PMO) Sim Hwee Ping, Director and Co-Head (PMO) |
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| International Energy Agency Yinglun Teng, Energy Analyst |
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| Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Lee & Lee Nathan Perez Van der Straeten, Intern |
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| HSBC Remi Degelcke, Managing Director, Head of Infrastructure Finance Southeast Asia Randolph Brazier, Global Head Clean Power Systems Goh Ping Yao, Associate Director, Sustainability and Climate Change, South and Southeast Asia |
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| Mizuho Mizuhiko Fujie, Head of APAC Sustainability |
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| SCOR Amy Fu, Regional Commercial Head, APAC, SCOR Business Solutions |
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| SEMI Energy Collaborative So Young Jang, Program Director, Energy Collaborative and Consortium |
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| United Overseas Bank (UOB) | ||
SSFA would also like to thank those who contributed their views at our industry stakeholder consultation focus group discussion (including several contributors named above): Asia Investor Group on Climate Change, Equinix, ERA, Howden, Manulife Investment Management, Princeton Digital Group, and SGX.
