ERIA President Stresses Midstream Resilience and Strategic Co-Investment for Indo-Pacific Energy Security at IPEM

Tokyo, 14 March 2026: Tetsuya Watanabe, President of the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), participated in the Sector Panel on Secure Energy Supply Chains at the Indo-Pacific Energy Security Ministerial and Business Forum (IPEM) in Tokyo. The session, held on 14 March, focused on practical strategies to strengthen resilient energy supply chains across the Indo-Pacific region.

In his remarks, President Watanabe emphasised that energy security discussions often concentrate on upstream resource availability, while today's vulnerabilities increasingly stem from the systems connecting these resources to end-users. He highlighted that, although the Indo-Pacific is rich in energy resources and critical minerals, having resources alone does not guarantee energy security.

President Watanabe stressed that midstream layers - such as processing capacity, industrial capability, infrastructure connectivity, and equipment manufacturing - are often the most critical vulnerabilities. Drawing on ERIA research, he noted that the concentration of refining and processing technologies outside ASEAN creates structural risks, making the midstream segment a potential single point of failure even when upstream supplies are diversified.

He also pointed out that ASEAN's electricity demand is projected to grow rapidly, while power systems remain fragmented and cross-border connections are limited. Initiatives like the ASEAN Power Grid, he said, are vital not only for facilitating electricity trade but also for enhancing system resilience, balancing supply shocks, and enabling greater integration of renewable energy.

On the topic of financing, President Watanabe observed that strategic energy projects face long time horizons and early-stage risks. He suggested that coordinating sovereign capital - including contributions from ASEAN sovereign wealth funds - could support anchor investments and attract private capital for key midstream and infrastructure priorities.

The panel was moderated by Verinda Fike, Regional Director for the Indo-Pacific at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), and included industry leaders from the nuclear, LNG, and renewable energy sectors.