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01 July 2016 | By invitation only

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and The Pacific (ESCAP) and The Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will be used as a vehicle to strengthen collaboration and to promote further sustainable development through electricity interconnection and cooperation within North-East Asia and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. Together, ESCAP and GEIDCO will promote the concept of global energy interconnection through research and innovation, key studies, international communication and cooperation, and pilot project implementation. In order to achieve a broader range of consensus-building to promote transboundary power grid connectivity and electricity trade, there is a great need to facilitate bilateral and multilateral consultation and joint studies to address common concerns and challenges.

In order to meet the broader economic, environmental and social goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, the global electricity sector must make simultaneous progress on multiple fronts. It must drive a rapid transition to low carbon electricity to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement while making meaningful progress on emissions reduction, and access to reliable and affordable electricity for all in the face of growing demand. Unprecedented regional and global cooperation as well as engagement of diverse public and private stakeholders will be essential in order to meet these challenges. The Asia-Pacific region in the midst of an energy renaissance, witnessing a series of rapid technological advances in clean energy generation, energy storage, power transmission and electric vehicles. These advances help fortify the argument that electricity, with its potential to harness clean sources, its flexibility and its transmissibility will be the principal fuel of the future. 

This Memorandum of Understanding between ESCAP and GEIDCO will help achieve these goals, by not only leveraging the technical capacities of GEIDCO, and the knowledge-sharing platforms that ESCAP provides, linking experts and policy-makers from diverse member States, but also the opportunities made possible by a shared vision of creating a dynamic, interconnected Asia-Pacific regional electricity grid which will allow for the integration of substantial shares of renewable energy in order to accelerate the energy transitions currently underway.

for more information, please contact

Energy Division +66 2 288 1234 [email protected]