A review on current energy usage and potential of sustainable energy in Southeast Asia countries

Electricity demand has been increasing over the years alongside the rapidly growing economy and population of the Southeast Asian countries. New sources of energy supply is needed to replace our over dependency on fossil fuels. The present study reviews the electricity consumption, energy production by fossil fuels, energy policy, and renewable energy production in the first five constituents of ASEAN i.e. Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, and Singapore that carries a total population of 475 million. These countries have been developing rapidly over the past few decades, creating large markets globally. Results show that these countries rely almost 75% on fossil fuels as their primary energy mix leading to a gradual increase in the total annual production of renewable energy. Research on renewable energy utilization shows that hydro energy plays an important role in power supply, accounting for generation of 14% of the region’s electricity in 2016, while geothermal resources from Indonesia and Philippines which are top in the world in terms of installed capacity contributes to 2% of electricity supply. Abundant renewable energy potential still remains under utilized in these countries. Policies are therefore being implemented by these countries to promote utilization of renewable energy while increasing energy efficiency.