Session 1.3: Technology Roadmaps for Key Technologies: Approaches and Findings

June 9th, 2020

Description: This session discussed the latest technology development of renewables, energy efficiency, and electrification of other sectors and how to set a more ambitious target in energy roadmaps with regulatory changes needed for the NDCs. Speakers can come from ADB, DMC executing agencies, relevant organizations from Asia and the Pacific, as well as other international organizations, to present recent developments and challenges in each technology field.                              

Moderator: Anindya Bhattacharya, Executive Director, The Celestial Earth                        

Roadmap to implement NDCs in Asia
Presenter: Anindya Bhattacharya, Executive Director, The Celestial Earth

The presentation covered the background of the project under the TA 9690 and its rationale and importance in the present context of climate change mitigation and sustainable development. Regional and national level baseline energy outlook until 2040 were presented along with the scope of low carbon energy technology deployment in the region as well as at the national level. Besides, the presentation also highlighted how the countries are placed following the baseline scenario in terms of achieving their NDC targets by 2030 and the potential gap of achieving the targets. It also discussed how the different types of low carbon technologies (supply and demand side) can help the countries to achieve their NDC target. Finally, given the COVID-19 pandemic situation, how an adjustment to the NDC target would be possible by changing the priorities of technologies based on cost and social issues were discussed.

 A Study on the Prospect of Hydropower to Hydrogen in Developing Countries in Asia - the Case of Nepal
Presenter: Wei Zhou, PhD candidate, University of Cambridge

Nepal faces a critical energy crisis due to an acute shortage of electricity and fuel supply, despite its abundant hydropower resources that have remained largely undeveloped. The country’s heavy dependence on energy imports, inadequate storage and limited diversity of domestic electricity generation sources present critical challenges to its energy security. Meanwhile, Nepal is among the countries that are most vulnerable to climate change. With hydrogen recently emerging as a promising solution within the dynamically developing global energy landscape, this study attempts to explore the prospect of hydrogen application for the unique context of Nepal where surplus electricity generated by hydropower during the wet season, which otherwise would have been curtailed, could potentially be converted to hydrogen for electricity regeneration to meet the demand during the dry season and/or electrifying and decarbonizing its major energy end-use sectors such as transport sector. The plausible hydrogen value chains were discussed, and the potentials of the hypothetical hydropower-to-power and hydropower-to-mobility pathways were estimated. This preliminary study is expected to help raise the awareness of policymakers and serve as a baseline for further investigation into hydrogen opportunities in Nepal and possibly in other developing countries with rich indigenous energy resources and facing similar energy-related challenges.

Energy Storage: Charging Up the Future
Presenters:
Xylia Sim, Managing Associate, Linklaters
John Maxwell, Asia Head of Energy and Infrastructure, Linklaters

Energy storage is increasingly relevant as a means of assisting with the intermittent nature of renewable energy and for balancing out the grid. This session included a summary of the state of the industry (stand-alone energy storage as well as combined generation and storage projects), and focused on the particular issues relevant to the emergence of energy storage as a viable investment class for developers/owners, lenders and other stakeholders. We drew on our experience from across our global network, in particular from Europe and Asia-Pacific. Issues that we covered include: (i) regulatory classification – is an energy storage project a generator or consumer of power; (ii) revenue sources, and how these may differ from a conventional project; (iii) financial projections; (iv) construction and O&M (i.e. contracting model, performance warranty coverage, degradation and noise coverage guarantees); and (v) E&S considerations (i.e. supply chain issues and safety standards).

Panelists:

  • My Ton, Principal & Director, P&R Energy, LLC
  • Xian Zhang, Ministry Deputy Director, The Administrative Centre of China's Agenda 21, Ministry of Science and Technology
  • Florian Kitt, Energy Specialist, Asian Development Bank (ADB)