The Lianhe Zaobao reported on July 28 that Singapore's Minister of Manpower, Dr. Tan See Leng, in an interview in his capacity as Cabinet Director for Energy, Technology, and Science, cited data from the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) stating that building a comprehensive ASEAN power grid, from upstream renewable energy generation to downstream equipment manufacturing such as solar panels, power interconnectors, and Ubåtkablar skulle kräva en total investering på 764 miljarder US -dollar. Han uppgav att att bygga ASEAN -kraftnätet skulle öka den regionala ekonomin, locka betydande utländska kapitalinflöden och främja investeringsinvesteringar. Grid-integration skulle också minska de övergripande kraftproduktionssystemkostnaderna och hjälpa Singapore, som saknar förnybar energi, uppnå sitt mål för nollutsläpp år 2050.
"With a robust government-to-government cooperation framework, these projects will more easily secure funding, including from the public and private sectors, and even long-term philanthropic funds. Our vision is to unlock the potential of this sector through cooperation between nations," said Dr. Tan See Leng, noting that Singapore, as a buyer of renewable energy, can promote related investment and collaborate with other international partners, such as sovereign wealth funds, the World Bank och den asiatiska utvecklingsbanken för att stödja den fortsatta utvecklingen av dessa projekt.
