SINGAPORE: Political dangers because of potential lack of public help over rising energy tariffs are a serious obstacle to transitioning to cleaner electrical energy sources, ministers from New Zealand and Cambodia advised an vitality business occasion on Monday (Oct 21).
“It is extremely necessary to take the general public with you, on condition that finish of the day, they need to consider that what you are doing is enhancing their lives,” Shane Jones, Affiliate Minister for Power, New Zealand, mentioned on the Singapore Worldwide Power Week convention (SIEW).
Jones mentioned New Zealand’s energy tariffs are akin to Singapore’s, rating among the many highest within the Asia-Pacific area.
“If the general public really feel that they can not see the upside of the medium- to long-term climate-positive outcomes, and so they’re struggling disproportionately on the journey, it results in political mayhem,” Jones mentioned.
Cambodia’s vitality minister, Keo Rottanak, mentioned the transition in Southeast Asia in direction of web zero can be pricey and take a very long time.
“If we do not carry prices down, we could lose the general public help, and due to this fact it’s going to simply make the entire thing go away,” he mentioned.
On the identical occasion, Amin Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producing firm, cited limitations of current transition plans.
“In a transition that requires staggering quantities of front-end capital funding, the price of capital is greater than twice as excessive in creating nations the place the necessity is bigger,” he mentioned.
“Allow us to be clear: all sources of vitality can be required for many years to return. Planners should additionally abandon the assumption {that a} single plan can meet the wants of greater than 200 nations,” he mentioned.
The transition “can be costly for everybody,” he mentioned.
Nasser mentioned present plans haven’t even been in a position to cut back demand for carbon-intensive coal.
“Attempting to pressure an unworkable, unaffordable transition plan on them will solely threaten their financial progress and even social cohesion,” he mentioned, referring to the worldwide South.
