METI: ASEAN+3 Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM+3) and East Asia Summit Energy Ministers Meeting (EAS EMM) Held

On September 16, the ASEAN+3 Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM+3) and East Asia Summit (EAS) Energy Ministers Meeting were held. Both meetings were held online, and the 10 ASEAN countries and other countries and international organizations participated. The outcomes of the meetings were compiled into respective Joint Ministerial Statements.

With energy demand in ASEAN growing, these meetings were inaugurated to ensure continuous economic growth and enhance measures for energy security and climate change in the region, by providing an opportunity for its countries’ energy ministers to discuss policy harmonization and international cooperation. This year, Cambodia was the chair.

The AMEM+3 this year brought together energy ministers and other officials from the 10 ASEAN member states and Japan, China, and the ROK. Representing Japan, Mr. Satomi Ryuji, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, attended as a co-chair.
The EAS EMM also brought together energy ministers from Australia, New Zealand, Russia, and the United States, in addition to the 13 countries mentioned above. Parliamentary Vice-Minister Satomi attended as the Japanese representative.

The key points in the respective meetings were as follows:

1．ASEAN+3 Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM+3)
The Meeting recognized the impact geopolitical events have on regional energy markets and supply security, including the current volatility of energy prices and the resiliency of the energy supply chain, and reaffirmed the need to promote international cooperation to achieve sustainable economic recovery and ensure continuous and affordable supplies of energy.
The Meeting also affirmed that there is no single path to achieving a low-carbon society and that we must take into account each ASEAN country’s different circumstances—such as their stage of economic development and geographic conditions—to achieve economic growth. In order to ensure stable and reliable supplies of energy, the participants considered various options and discussed the need to utilize all available technologies and fuels.
In the activity briefings, the ASEAN Energy Center (ACE) introduced the 7th ASEAN Energy Outlook. The Meeting congratulated ACE on its contribution, which will light the way toward achieving energy transitions moving forward.
The Meeting also welcomed the Asia Energy Transition Initiative (AETI)—a package of comprehensive support measures from Japan—and the efforts and support it is providing in individual technological fields.
2．East Asia Summit Energy Ministers Meeting (EAS EMM)
EAS countries held talks to advance the agendas of climate sustainability and decarbonization in the energy field, amid geopolitical tensions that are undermining the group’s efforts to strengthen regional energy security and supplies of affordable energy.
The Meeting recognized the importance of achieving realistic energy transitions by using various alternative and emerging low-carbon technologies and systems, such as fuel ammonia, hydrogen, biomass, nuclear power, carbon capture utilization and/or storage (CCU/S), and carbon recycling.
In the activity briefings, the Meeting noted that ERIA (the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia) has contributed to formulating a roadmap toward carbon neutrality and has established a list of transition technologies to support transition finance. The Meeting also welcomed the work done by the Asia CCUS Network—a platform led by Japan and ERIA for sharing knowledge and environmental developments toward using CCUS in the region—and expressed the hopes for future human resource development and knowledge sharing from case studies.
In addition, the Meeting expressed their gratitude toward Japan for advocating for the importance of using natural gas as a transition fuel to enhance energy security in Asia, and for the country’s wide-ranging efforts toward achieving energy transitions in fields including energy efficiency, hydrogen, natural gas and LNG, and CCUS and carbon recycling.
Next year’s AMEM+3 and EAS EMM will be chaired by Indonesia, which will be the chair of ASEAN.