The Asian Development Bank has launched the Regional Connectivity Fund for Energy in Southeast Asia, a multi-partner trust fund designed to finance critical project preparation work for cross-border energy and transmission infrastructure across the ten ASEAN member states. The fund is the first of its kind in the region and marks a significant step in advancing the ASEAN Power Grid, the bloc's flagship initiative to achieve fully integrated electricity grid operations by 2045.

Gulf News reported that initial funding of approximately US$25 million (approximately €23 million) has been contributed by the governments of Australia, Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom, alongside the European Union. The fund will be managed by ADB in close collaboration with the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund Board and ASEAN member states.

Masato Kanda, ADB president, said the ASEAN Power Grid is one of Southeast Asia's greatest opportunities, with the potential to deliver energy security for nearly 700 million people and power the region's growth, and that the launch of the project preparation fund is a decisive step toward accelerating high-quality investments and turning regional ambition into action.

The fund will provide technical assistance and project readiness financing grants to support feasibility studies, engineering design, financial structuring, and safeguards assessments. It will also fund policy advice, regulatory improvements, capacity building, and knowledge sharing to strengthen the enabling environment for cross-border power connections.

Southeast Asia's energy demand is expected to triple by 2050. ADB has pledged up to US$10 billion (approximately €9.2 billion) over ten years toward the ASEAN Power Grid and related investments, targeting cross-border power connections, national grid projects, and renewable energy initiatives that will facilitate energy trading across the region.

Read the full report on the ADB's new ASEAN Power Grid trust fund.