Canada Bankrolls Almost $973,000 for ASEAN Carbon Capture

Jakarta. Canada is bankrolling ASEAN’s efforts to be able to store its massive emissions as Southeast Asia seeks to pivot to a low-carbon economy.

Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies allow countries to prevent emissions from entering the atmosphere either by permanently storing them underground or by reusing them as feedstocks for additional products. ASEAN -- which accounted for at least 4.75% of the global emissions as of 2020 -- is now eyeing this technology to prevent further harming the planet. Canada, an early CCUS adopter, is lending a hand.

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According to Canada’s Assistant Deputy Minister for Indo-Pacific Weldon Epp, Ottawa has deployed some money for an ASEAN Center of Energy (ACE) project to fast-track the CCUS dreams. ACE is the region’s intergovernmental organization aimed at assisting ASEAN in boosting energy security and renewables uptake.

“We have funded a CAD 1.38 million [almost $973,000] project with ACE through the ASEAN-Canada Trust fund to explore cooperation on CCUS, contributing to [the region's] energy transition," Epp told a dialogue in Jakarta on Tuesday.

He went on to say that the money will aid the so-called ASEAN Power Grid, the group’s ambition of connecting the member states’ electricity networks. Canada has mobilized a separate CAD 2 million ($1.4 million) to a multi-partner fund helmed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for the regional power grid, according to Epp.

ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn confirmed that the grouping was eyeing CCUS technologies. The now 11-strong bloc is hoping to close the green investment gap by partnering with Canada. Kao added: “Canada brings experience and expertise across both conventional and clean energy, [including in] CCUS. … We are already working together on CCUS opportunities.”

The aforementioned “trust fund” has seen Canada contributing a total of CAD 9 million ($6.3 million), a June 2026 partnership overview document uploaded by the ASEAN Secretariat shows. Ottawa has promised to deploy CAD 11.7 million ($8.2 million) to promote cooperation.

A 2024 government statement indicated that Indonesia was hoping to operate 15 CCUS and CCS projects by 2030. CCS operates similarly to a CCUS, but does not include the utilization or reusing the captured carbon component.