Expanding energy supplies for an enhanced economic development and simultaneously managing environmental impacts as well as social concerns and energy security has become a challenging task for many of Asia’s political and business leaders. After two decades of strong economic growth many of the economies in Asia presently face difficult conditions of recession and structural adjustment. However, throughout the region government decisionmakers widely recognize that finding long-term sustainable solutions for the development of the energy sector and for increasing the efficiency in energy end uses throughout the economy remains an area requiring priority attention.

The growing national and international concern for achieving a sustainable energy future for all has been embodied in all of the more recent multilateral declarations concerning environmental protection, including Agenda 21, adopted at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and the more recent Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly at its Nineteenth Special Session held in New York, 23-28 June 1997. The crucial importance of finding ways to enhance efficiency in energy uses is also recognized in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and in particular in Articles 2 and 10 of the Kyoto Protocol to the Convention, which was adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC Convention at its Third Session, held in Kyoto, Japan, 1-10 December 1997.

There are principally three options available to governments to integrate energy development and environmental concerns: a) enhanced efficiency on the energy supply side, including possible fuel switching from high carbon to low or no carbon sources of energy, b) further commercialization and use of renewable sources of energy, particularly for rural energy supplies, and c) energy demand management through promotion of efficiency in energy end uses. Despite the widespread recognition among governments of the importance of realizing greater efficiencies in energy use, technical and non-technical barriers continue to inhibit individual investors and consumers from choosing long-term, environmentally sustainable options. These barriers include lack of information, uncertainty about the future and a desire to minimize first costs of investment or consumption. As a result, many governments have considered the use of legislation to direct investment and consumption decisions.

Since the beginning of the 1980s several of the countries of the Asia and Pacific region have promulgated their national energy policies in the form of national energy and energy conservation plans and/or energy conservation and energy efficiency laws. While there is considerable experience with legislative initiatives in some countries, finding a consensus on the formulation and implementation of regulatory measures continues to pose some difficulties for other countries.

Promotion of energy efficiency through legislation and regulatory measures seems to offer considerable scope for intra- and inter-regional exchanges of information and experiences. The objective of this Compendium of Energy Conservation Legislation in Countries of the Asia and Pacific Region is to contribute to and to facilitate the international and regional cooperation in this area. This publication was, therefore, mandated by the Commission as a part of the 1998-1999 work programme of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Secretariat.

This publication is divided into five parts. Part One introduces the topic of energy conservation and efficiency legislation, including the principal options facing policymakers and their relative effectiveness. Part Two presents four country papers which consider energy conservation and efficiency legislation at the national level. Part Three presents four issue papers which discuss various aspects of establishing regulatory mechanisms by sector.

Part Four is a compilation of the texts of selected national laws and regulations for use as reference materials and as a source of information. It should be noted that these are mostly unofficial translations of national laws and regulations. Limitations on the length of this publication made it impossible to include all laws in this study. Nevertheless, it is hoped that the selected texts will facilitate regional information exchange.

For ease of reference, two international protocols relating to the promotion of sustainable energy use are given in Part Five: the Energy Charter Protocol on Energy Efficiency and Related Environmental Aspects (adopted at European Energy Charter Conference, 17 December 1994); and the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (adopted at Conference of the Parties, Third Session, 10 December 1997).

The manuscript for this publication was prepared during the first half of 1998. Papers and contributions authored by the following resource persons are included in this publication:

Mi Chung Ahn (Energy Conservation Policy Division, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Seoul, Republic of Korea), Adrian J. Bradbrook (Faculty of Law, University of Adelaide, Australia), Dieter Brulez (German Technical Cooperation Agency GTZ, Bangkok, Thailand), Josie Close (Department of Architecture, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China), Kristina J. Egan (International Institute of Energy Conservation, Asia Office, Bangkok, Thailand), Kwisun Huh (Department of Geography and Earth Resources, Utah State University, USA), Akira Ishiyama (Japan International Cooperation Agency/ESCAP, Bangkok, Thailand), Rudi Rauch (German Technical Cooperation Agency GTZ, Bangkok, Thailand), Budi S. Sudarsono (Badan Tenaga Nuklir Nasional, Jakarta, Indonesia).

ESCAP wishes to acknowledge with appreciation these contributions. The Secretariat also wishes to express gratitude to the Government of Japan and to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for their financial support for the preparation and the printing of this publication.