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At the 29th Conference of the Parties (COP29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, global finance leaders BlackRock, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI), and AIA signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) to explore a collaborative debt financing initiative aimed at supporting large-scale decarbonisation projects in Asia, with a specific focus on Southeast Asia.
This partnership, aligned with MAS’ Financing Asia’s Transition Partnership (FAST-P) program, represents a critical step towards addressing the region’s significant financing needs for climate-related projects. Announced at COP28, FAST-P is a blended finance platform launched by the Singapore government, targeting up to US$5 billion in investments from public, private, and philanthropic entities to support Southeast Asia’s transition to a low-carbon economy.
According to a joint report by the IFC and the International Energy Agency, the current annual investment in clean energy across Southeast Asia—approximately US$30 billion—will need to increase to US$208-244 billion by the early 2030s to meet rising energy demands. The Industrial Transformation programme, part of FAST-P, will focus on financing opportunities to support decarbonisation projects, with the goal of attracting concessional and commercial capital to accelerate the transition.
Under the newly signed SOI, the parties will explore debt financing options specifically for companies in hard-to-abate industries, those developing low-carbon technologies, and other sectors requiring significant capital to decarbonise. BlackRock, a global leader in infrastructure investment, holds approximately US$170 billion in assets under management (AUM) across major infrastructure markets and will bring its expertise in blended finance and transition investing to the initiative.
Key Leaders Comment on Partnership
Mark Wiedman, Head of Global Client Business at BlackRock, emphasized the challenges of financing capital-intensive decarbonisation projects in emerging markets. “BlackRock is bringing our blended finance and transition investing expertise to public-private partnerships like FAST-P, benefitting our clients and the societies in which we invest,” he stated.
Leong Sing Chiong, Deputy Managing Director, Markets and Development at MAS, highlighted the importance of financing for businesses aiming to adopt cleaner technologies. “The signing of the SOI is an important step towards accelerating the transition in Asia, and we are delighted to have BlackRock, IFC, MUFG, NEXI, and AIA as partners in FAST-P,” he said.
Riccardo Puliti, Regional Vice President for Asia Pacific at IFC, acknowledged the high stakes in Southeast Asia, where climate change threatens environmental and economic stability. He noted that this collaboration will “help investors channel the financing required into countries and projects that need it most.”
Fumitaka Nakahama, Chief Executive of Global Corporate and Investment Banking at MUFG, described FAST-P as a “significant platform” for promoting sustainable development in Asia, expressing enthusiasm for MUFG’s participation in the initiative.
Dr. Mark Konyn, Group Chief Investment Officer at AIA, reaffirmed AIA’s commitment to decarbonisation, stating that the collaboration aligns with the company’s Science-Based Targets for emissions reduction. “Our commitment to decarbonisation is reinforced through our near-term emissions reductions targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi),” he added.
This initiative marks a concerted effort by leading financial institutions to tackle the region’s financing gap in decarbonisation projects and is expected to catalyse further capital flows to support Southeast Asia’s energy transition goals. |
