On 5-11 November 2023, ACCEPT II successfully arranged a study tour for ASEAN Member States (AMS) representatives to energy and climate institutions located in Norway. The study tour aims to facilitate dialogue and knowledge sharing between Norway and AMS on relevant strategies to help reach their net zero target by 2050. Moreover, it is hoped that together,  AMS representatives, Norwegian government and institutions could give new perspectives on policy making aimed to enhance carbon neutrality or net zero in the coming years. This study tour also subjected to the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) Phase II: 2021-2025 putting focus on Programme Area No. 6 which discusses about Regional Energy Policy and Planning, Outcome-based Strategy (OBS 6) on promoting information sharing on the energy-climate nexus. 

During this five-days study tour, it is found that 86% of AMS participants were women among which was attended by: 

6 November 2023 

The first day of the study tour was conducted in the office of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) located in Oslo as ACCEPT II’s project partner and co-organiser for the event. Kari Osland, Director of NUPI welcomed the participants with a warm opening speech. Followed by another speech from Valentin Musangwa from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Royal Norwegian Embassy in Jakarta expressing his perspective on the tour. Then Dr Nuki Agya Utama, the Executive Director of ACE and Prof. Indra Overland, the Head of Center of Energy Research also conveyed their remarks.  

Participants spent the day involved in dynamic discussions with intriguing topics related to energy-climate issues delivered by experts and professionals. The first session was presented by Dr Anja Royne from the University of Oslo where she showed her findings on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), with focus on technology, challenges, and opportunities. She emphasised that CCS technology could reduce and remove CO2 excess generated from fossil fuel plants and hard-to-abate industrial processes from the atmosphere. Other than that, Dr Royne also gave a brief introduction of The Longship Project in her session.  

Bjornar Baugerus, the leader for Norad’s Climate Investment Fund from Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries led the second session and shared his take on energy-transition financing. In addition, to support the data-driven energy outlook, Prof. Indra Overland discussed about the climate and renewable energy outlook in Norway for ASEAN’s perspective.  

Closing the day, the Director General of Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, Kristin Myskja gave valuable insights on policy planning strategies that have been implemented by Norwegian government relevant to energy transition and climate issues.   

After a day of discussions, a welcome dinner was held at Indonesia’s Ambassador to Norway Residence . It served as a network-sharing platform between ASEAN and Norwegian government. H.E. Teuku Faisazyah, Indonesia’s Ambassador to Norway delivered his remarks and excitement, welcoming all ASEAN representatives for their arrival in Norway. Following the remarks, H.E. Enrico Trinidad Fos, Philippines’ Ambassador to Norway also emphasised the importance of climate-energy pathways to discover new opportunities of climate action, technology adaptation, and climate investment in accelerating ASEAN’s net zero target. The welcome dinner went very warm and exciting, where cuisines from all around Southeast Asia were served. Through this gathering, it is hoped that relationship between ASEAN countries and the Norwegian government would strengthen and help increase cooperation towards climate-relevant issues.  

7 November 2023 

To start the second day of the study tour, participants got a chance to visit the Klemetsrud Incineration Plant. As Norway has no landfill, all the waste are sorted and managed either to the recycling industry or the waste-to-energy (WtE) plant. Hasflund Oslo Celsio is the largest WtE plant in Norway with a capacity to end-treat 400,000 tonnes of waste per year. The company also serves as the largest supplier of heating in the district with a recorded 36% supply of the district heating generated in Norway in 2021. Currently, they are also expanding their activities to accommodate district cooling and fiber networks. Through the tour, participants were introduced to the incineration system of waste, with plastic waste being the centre of attention. The waste is burned at a temperature of 800°C which then generates electricity that is distributed to the district.

The tour was then followed by a brief lecture delivered back at NUPI’s office. NUPI invited Heimdall Power and CorPower Ocean to introduce their technologies that have been implemented in several European countries, which focuses on hydro and ocean power development. Sarah Crowley, the modelling and data analysis engineer from Heimdall Powerb rought with her Heimdall Power’s newest sensor for hydropower called “The Neuron”. This sensoric tool can support in assessing and evaluating the current condition of the high-voltage power lines and has been implemented by 16 countries. 

The next sharing session was shared by Jørgen Hals Todalshaug, lead scientist at CorPower Ocean. The company focuses on developing ocean-based technology by inventing an energy converter with human-heart principles. The technology aims to maximize generation capacity and provides robust operation in the harshest ocean conditions. 

The second day of the trip highlighted the role of technology in combating the impact of climate change. The waste-to-energy power plant with CCS technology could reduce GHG emissions at a faster rate. It is also involved in The Longship Project. Other than that, both Heimdall Power and CorPower Ocean are developing water-based technology to optimize the power generation from hydropower plant and wave energy. In the end, all of these technological advances would help in bolstering energy transition. 

Detailed information on ACCEPT II can be found at https://accept.aseanenergy.org/

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