KUALA LUMPUR (March 30): The International Energy Agency (IEA) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) have committed to expanding their cooperation in the fields of energy security analysis, data and modelling, and clean energy technology.

In a statement on its website yesterday, the IEA said the two international organisations formalised this agreement through a memorandum of understanding signed IEA executive director Dr Fatih Birol and ADB President Takehiko Nakao.

It said the agreement reflects the complementary nature of the goals and missions of both organizations, and seeks to bring the IEA’s technical energy expertise, data and analysis together with the ADB’s extensive energy sector lending and financing programmes in Asia.

It also reflects the IEA’s strong commitment to working with key country partners in Asia, an area in which the Agency has had considerable recent success, it said.

“The IEA and the ADB are natural partners in the pursuit of energy sector development in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Dr Birol.

“Our partnership with the ADB is one part of our rapidly progressing strategy to engage deeply with key emerging economies in Asia,” he said.

The IEA and the ADB will expand cooperation on energy technology assessments, energy data and statistics, energy efficiency, supply, demand and investment modelling, renewable energy deployment, and energy security analysis.

IEA said Dr Birol and Nakao also discussed energy sector challenges and opportunities in Asia, noting the importance in particular of power sector development to meet growing demand and to tackle electrification challenges – an area in which both organizations have significant experience.