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As I see it | Will US bank collapses hamper the clean energy transitions of China, India, rest of Asia?
- Asia’s climate goals and energy transition, which require billions in funding, could take a hit as banks and nations tighten lending after US bank failures
- Effects of climate change are clearly felt in Asia, home to 19 of the world’s 25 most exposed cities to a one-metre rise in sea levels
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The collapse of two American banks and a US$30-billion infusion to save a third bank in recent weeks signal that the days of cheap and easy money are over.
While the crisis has not spread to Asia like the 2008 contagion, one of the biggest concerns is whether tougher lending conditions will hamper the region’s transition to clean energy and climate change goals, which require billions in funding.
The region is home to 19 of the world’s 25 most exposed cities to a one-metre rise in sea levels. And the effects are already visible.
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Heavy floods hit Indonesia and Malaysia this year, while Pakistan is still reeling from losses after a third of the country was submerged last year. India suspended wheat exports after experiencing unusually warm spring seasons, while uncertainty about monsoon is threatening its rice output this year.
Indonesia’s Energy Minister Arifin Tasrif last month said Asean would need US$29.4 trillion until 2050 to achieve 100 per cent renewable power generation, citing an International Energy Agency report.
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