IEA and Singapore co-host Second Global Ministerial Conference on System Integration of Renewables

The IEA and Singapore co-hosted the Second Global Ministerial Conference on System Integration of Renewables (SIR Ministerial) on 27 October 2020, alongside Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW). The virtual event was co-chaired by Dr Fatih Birol, IEA Executive Director, and H.E. Dr. Tan See Leng, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, and Second Minister of Industry and Trade, and of Manpower, Singapore.

Following the first SIR Ministerial in 2019, co-hosted by the IEA and Germany, over 30 Ministers, Senior Officials, and CEOs gathered for an in-depth virtual dialogue on key power sector concerns, against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. Topics included accelerating investment in renewable energy technology and infrastructure, and pathways to develop resilient and flexible power systems.

The IEA also launched Power Systems in Transition, its first report in an upcoming series on Electricity Security, highlighting the three key challenges to ensuring future energy security: Energy Transitions, Cyber Risks, and Climate Change.

The event featured opening remarks by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy of Thailand, H.E. Supattanapong Punmeechaow, and closing remarks by Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia, H.E. Arifin Tasrif. Speakers included Ministers from Hungary, Portugal, Poland, and the Philippines, while CEOs from major companies included GE Renewables, Hitatchi ABB Powergrids, DBS Bank, and the State Grid Corporation of China. The event showcased the steps countries and companies are taking to build power system enhancement into clean energy transitions as part of sustainable, resilient and secure recoveries from COVID-19.

The IEA is currently exploring opportunities and themes for the third SIR Ministerial, to take place in 2021.