LAHORE: The second Asia Energy Transition Summit, jointly organised by the LUMS Energy Institute (LEI), the Alliance for Climate Justice and Clean Energy (ACJCE) and the Pakistan Renewable Energy Coalition (PREC), concluded at LUMS on December 7. The two-day event brought together federal ministers, parliamentarians, civil servants, climate and energy experts and practitioners, academics and activists from across South Asia and Southeast Asia. The summit reaffirmed’s Asia’s growing political, financial and technological role in shaping regional and global trends towards a clean and just energy transition.
It also emphasised the need for stronger regional cooperation and collaboration within Asia to expedite and smoothen this transition.
The Summit featured plenary sessions, keynote addresses and thematic discussions focused on advancing a just, people-centred, and affordable energy transition across Asia.
Speaking at the closing plenary, Dr Musadik Malik, Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, highlighted the financing challenges that developing economies face, particularly in the energy and climate sectors. “The energy transition must ease the already heavy financial burdens on the developing states, not create new ones,” he noted. He also emphasised that as storage costs fall, batteries can address renewable variability and make energy transition smooth.
Nafeesa Shah, Co-Convener, Parliamentary Forum on Energy & Economy, said, “Parliamentarians and policymakers are the missing link in the energy transition and climate diplomacy discourse. It is essential that we promote global and Asia level collaborations for an effective and just energy transition.”
Addressing a town-hall session on Pakistan’s power sector, Awais Leghari, Federal Minister for Energy (Power Division), emphasised the urgent need to modernise the national grid in order to ensure a smooth and speedy energy transition. “Pakistan must build a flexible and a renewables-driven power system,” he said. “The insights shared during the Asia Energy Transition Summit will certainly guide power sector reforms within Pakistan and help it expand its solar and wind resources for power generation while also ensuring their equitable and affordable access to the citizens.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025