Balancing South-East Asia’s power grid: hydropower for a connected, renewable future

South‑East Asia is advancing regional power integration through the ASEAN Power Grid (APG), a flagship initiative to enhance energy security, affordability and decarbonisation through cross‑border electricity trade. As interconnection expands and variable renewable energy deployment accelerates, the APG’s success will depend on access to flexible, dispatchable and reliable resources. Hydropower’s role has evolved beyond generation, including providing balancing services, reserve capacity and system flexibility that are essential for interconnected ASEAN power systems.

The region continues to expand its hydropower capacity, alongside modernisation of existing facilities to improve performance and resilience. Since the 2023 World Hydropower Congress, progress has accelerated in Indonesia, while development in the Mekong sub‑region and the Philippines demonstrates growing alignment between hydropower investment, grid reliability and regional integration objectives.  

This session will examine how hydropower and pumped storage can support the technical and commercial viability of the ASEAN Power Grid. Speakers will present a regional perspective on recent achievements, investment trends and policy developments, and explore how hydropower can enable higher shares of solar and wind across national borders. The discussion will also address remaining challenges, including sustainability, transboundary water governance, climate resilience and financing frameworks.

By linking hydropower development directly to the ASEAN Power Grid vision, this session will identify practical pathways to unlock hydropower’s full regional value and strengthen South‑East Asia’s collective energy transition.

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