TransitionZero

🇹🇼 As the world’s semiconductor hub and Asia’s ninth-largest economy, Taiwan’s energy decisions carry global weight, shaping how technology leaders decarbonise their supply chains. In 2024, the government raised its 2030 emissions reduction target from 24% to 28% below 2005 levels. The country faces both opportunities and obstacles in shifting to a grid powered by low-cost, variable renewable energy. Our analysis shows strong benefits for commercial and industrial Taiwanese consumers to move toward hourly-matched 24/7 carbon-free energy (CFE) can support Taiwan’s decarbonisation goals. Using a detailed, open-source model, we examined how 24/7 carbon-free energy could affect grid planners and corporate buyers. Specifically, what would it mean if 5% of commercial and industrial demand was met with 24/7 CFE by 2030? To find out, we developed a 1-node model of Taiwan’s 2030 power system using the open-source Python for Power System Analysis (PyPSA) package, with hourly resolution. The results are clear: if 5% of Taiwan’s grid electricity demand adopted 80% CFE, a least-cost approach that prioritises maximising cheaper onshore wind, solar and geothermal before turning to more expensive technologies, it would translate into system-wide savings of roughly US$1 billion per year. Reaching 80% CFE would also result in deep emissions cuts for the Taiwanese power system — 5MtCO2e per year, while requiring less overall capacity than annual matching, thanks to its reliance on geothermal for firm, clean supply. 👉 Download the full Modelling 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy in Taiwan report here → transitionzero.org/cfe This work builds on the foundational open-source 24/7 CFE modelling studies by Jesse Jenkins, Qingyu Xu, Tom Brown, and Iegor Riepin, whose research and guidance shaped our methodology. These reports are based on detailed open-source grid models, and the GitHub repository will be made available shortly. For more information, see the methodology document.

🇹🇼 In their 2024 Nationally Determined Contributions, Taiwan pledged to reduce emissions by around 28% compared to 2005 levels, signalling renewed climate ambition even as doubts grow over its renewable energy rollout. ⚡ With our open-source model of Taiwan’s grid, we explored how a subset of commercial and industrial consumers using 24/7 carbon free energy (CFE) — matching their consumption to clean power by the hour — could help them to achieve these goals. Stay tuned — our Taiwan report will be released tomorrow. 🔎 While we’ve got your attention, now is a great time to read our explainer on 24/7 CFE, and how this approach can transform energy transition planning 👉 https://lnkd.in/eYrjic25

📢 WEBINAR: Join us at 3pm GMT+8 / 8am GMT on 23rd October to discuss the results of our new study modelling the impact of 24/7 carbon free electricity in Singapore 🇸🇬 Register here 👉🏻 https://lnkd.in/e6mzqW2y Isabella Suarez and Handriyanti Diah Puspitarini will present key findings, including ⚡ How one of the world’s most land-constrained countries can achieve 24/7 CFE through regional interconnections ⚡ The trade-offs in system design under hourly matching vs annual procurement ⚡ How corporate buyers and planners can optimise clean power sourcing in a high-demand, low-renewables context 🗨️ We’re thrilled to be joined by an expert panel of speakers: Peerapat Vithayasrichareon — International Energy Agency (IEA), Balasubramanian Viswanathan — Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), and Lorenzo Mancini — Peak Energy Stay tuned for an insightful discussion on corporate decarbonisation and the role of RE and interconnectors in accelerating Singapore's clean power future. Can't wait? Download the report today: transitionzero.org/cfe

🇲🇾 Malaysia’s National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) charts a path to peak emissions around 2040 and reach net zero by 2050. With a rapidly industrialising economy and a grid powered largely by coal and gas, the move toward greater solar, storage and other renewables marks both a challenge and an opportunity for the clean energy transition. ☀️🔋 Our analysis shows strong benefits for commercial and industrial Malaysian consumers to move away from annual matching toward hourly matched 24/7 carbon free energy (CFE), which can support Malaysia’s digitalisation and decarbonisation goals. Using a detailed, open-source model, we examined how 24/7 carbon-free energy could affect grid planners and corporate buyers. Specifically, what would it mean if 5% of commercial and industrial demand was met with 24/7 CFE by 2030? Our model includes three domestic nodes — Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak, and Sabah — and three international interconnectors with Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia. Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak are expected to see significant CFE demand from large C&I consumers, particularly data centres and other energy-intensive industries. We model 24/7 CFE for a subset of demand in these two regions. Results show that optimal hourly matching for C&I consumers is high: 80% CFE in Peninsular Malaysia and 90% CFE in Sarawak. In comparison to hourly matching, net system costs are US$10 million at 80% CFE in Peninsular Malaysia and US$5 million lower at 90% CFE in Sarawak. Overall, 24/7 CFE by 2030 can be delivered at a lower system cost than annual matching, and these savings grow as CFE targets rise, reaching, ranging from US$560 to 710 million in avoided fuel cost. 👉 Download the full Modelling 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy in Malaysia report here → https://lnkd.in/ej7H9BYq This work builds on the foundational open-source 24/7 CFE modelling studies by Jesse Jenkins, Qingyu Xu, Tom Brown, and Iegor Riepin, whose research and guidance shaped our methodology. These reports are based on detailed open-source grid models, and the GitHub repository will be made available after the publication of the final report. For more information, see the methodology document.

🇲🇾 Malaysia’s power mix tells a story of regional diversity — hydropower in Sarawak, gas in Sabah, and coal and gas in Peninsular Malaysia. The country’s untapped renewable potential and improving regulatory landscape present major opportunities, but large consumers and developers continue to face challenges in accessing competitive clean power at scale. ⚡ With our open-source model of the Malaysian grid, we explored how a subset of commercial and industrial consumers using 24/7 carbon free energy (CFE) — matching their consumption to clean power by the hour — could help the country strengthen its position as a regional energy transition leader. Stay tuned as we release the full report later this week. 🔎 Need to brush up on CFE? Check out our explainer and see how this approach can transform energy transition planning 👉 https://lnkd.in/eYrjic25

🧠 WEBINAR: What could 24/7 CFE look like in Singapore? 🗓️ 23rd October, 8am GMT/ 3pm SGT Join TransitionZero and expert panelists to unpack the findings of our 24/7 Carbon Free Energy in Singapore modelling report. Southeast Asia Lead Analyst Isabella Suarez will present key findings, including: ⚡ How achieving a 70% CFE share could lower system costs by US$47M annually compared with annual matching, while saving at least US$185M in fuel costs by displacing gas on the main grid. ⚡ How regional interconnectors save money and reduce emissions by increasing solar generation and further displacing gas. A 1 GW import line from Indonesia increases clean electricity access from 2.7% to 10% by 2030. 🗨️ Followed by a panel discussion and short Q&A 🔗 Register here: https://lnkd.in/e6mzqW2y

🚀 Scenario Builder now features multi-node models for Malaysia and the Philippines! We’re excited to expand Scenario Builder’s coverage to two of Southeast Asia’s most dynamic and fast-evolving power markets. What’s different from our earlier country releases? We’re representing each of these countries as 3-node models, allowing users to explore capacity expansion pathways at the sub-national level — a major step forward, given how distinct the energy landscape and priorities are across the regions. 🇲🇾 Malaysia sits at the heart of Southeast Asia. Its power sector is at a crossroads — balancing rapid demand growth, a clear coal phase-out schedule, declining domestic gas reserves, and abundant but unevenly distributed renewable resources. Throw in the prospects of stronger regional grid connectivity and Malaysia’s aspiration to become Southeast Asia’s clean energy trading hub, and you’ve got a fascinating energy story unfolding. 🇵🇭 The Philippines is home to the region’s fourth-largest coal fleet, but has imposed a moratorium on new coal plant development. It now faces the critical challenge of meeting surging demand while accelerating its clean energy transition. When and how can solar, offshore wind, storage, and interconnections take the lead? As with all countries on Scenario Builder, we start users with a ‘least-cost’ scenario, which is a starting point — not a forecast or policy pathway — to allow users to quickly tweak assumptions to see how policies and prices affect costs, investments, and emissions. This lets users reduce setup times and move from model to insight more quickly. Access Scenario Builder here 👉🏻 https://lnkd.in/grTVagGC

🇸🇬 Singapore’s updated climate targets, outlined in its Second Nationally Determined Contribution submitted in February 2025, commit the country to reducing emissions to 45–50 MtCO₂e by 2035. 🏝️ As a small island city-state with limited domestic clean energy resources, Singapore requires careful planning to decarbonise its power system. Using a detailed, open-source model, we examined how 24/7 carbon-free energy could affect grid planners and corporate buyers. Specifically, what are the implications of meeting 4% of demand with 24/7 CFE by 2030? Our model treated Singapore as a single grid zone with two interconnectors: the existing link to Peninsular Malaysia and a planned connection to Indonesia. 💰 Results show that achieving a 70% CFE share could lower system costs by US$47M annually compared with annual matching, while saving at least US$185M in fuel costs by displacing gas on the main grid. 🔄 Regional interconnectors are key: they save money and reduce emissions by increasing solar generation and further displacing gas. A 1 GW import line from Indonesia increases clean electricity access from 2.7% to 10% by 2030. This is the third in a series of reports exploring the system-level impacts of 24/7 CFE, following India and Japan. This work draws on the extraordinary contributions of those who came before us. We would like to acknowledge the first 24/7 CFE modelling studies published by Jesse Jenkins (Associate Professor, Princeton University), Qingyu Xu (Associate Research Fellow, Beijing Huairou Laboratory), Tom Brown (Professor of "Digital Transformation in Energy Systems", Technical University of Berlin), and Iegor Riepin (Staff Research Scientist, Technical University of Berlin). As open source projects, these provided us with the guiding methodology and modelling approach upon which to build. In addition, we benefited from Iegor's guidance and expertise on the finer details of modelling. This work would not have been possible without their groundbreaking research. These reports are based on detailed open source grid models. The GitHub repository will be made available after the publication of the last report. 👉 Download the full Modelling 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy in Singapore report here → transitionzero.org/cfe

🇸🇬 Under their Second National Determined Contributions, Singapore has committed to reducing emissions to 45–50 MtCO₂e by 2035. As a highly urbanised economy with limited wind and solar resources and a current dependence on gas, this target will require a major transformation of its power system. ⚡ With our open-source model of Singapore’s grid, we explored how a subset of commercial and industrial consumers using 24/7 carbon free energy (CFE) — matching their consumption to clean power by the hour — could help the city-state achieve these goals. Stay tuned as we release the full report next week. 🔎 In the meantime, explore our explainer on 24/7 CFE to see how this approach can transform energy transition planning 👉 https://lnkd.in/eYrjic25

Highlights/thoughts from NYCW: - Co-hosting a roundtable with The Carbon Trust colleagues Andrew Lever and Chris Stephens on how philanthropic funders can deploy catalytic capital at scale for greatest impact. We're looking forward to starting the first Greenprint pilot and hope to share more information about this soon. - Co-hosting a roundtable with Ember and Brunswick Group colleagues Daan Walter and Wolfgang Blau on the future of the grid. Congratulations to Stephanie Stevenson on delivering an awesome demo/pitch of Scenario Builder to c-suite representatives from utilities and grid operators. - Meeting with a government delegation interested in the system cost implications of closing a coal plant. It was nice to put Scenario Builder to work in real time and share some initial results. - Attending a roundtable hosted by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change and The Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative. It was inspiring to hear from and speak with senior officials and executives. I appreciated Arnie's terminator joke and congrats to fellow 🥝 Lindy Fursman for doing such a good job chairing! - Attending the Green Grids Initiative (GGI)’s launch of their Climate Finance Principles to Unlock Grids Financing. Measuring emissions reductions from transmission projects requires detailed grid modelling. We're looking forward to supporting Marcus Stewart and Georgie Skipper on this important work. - Catching up with Maximilian Parzen from Open Energy Transition and Justin Locke from Global Energy Monitor to explore collaboration on open-source data and modelling to accelerate the adoption of transparent, accessible tools. Excited to see how we can combine efforts to make high-quality data and modelling available to more analysts and decision-makers globally. - It was encouraging to see a growing realisation of the importance of grid modelling. Every generation, storage, or grid project depends on detailed modelling studies. These studies can take months or even years to complete, when they should take days. The good news is that with advances in technology, we can drastically cut the time required and, more importantly, enable analysts in emerging markets and developing economies to carry out these studies themselves at low cost. - Lastly, a big thank you to my colleagues Steph and Temiloluwa Olushola for coming to NYCW, and to Joojin Kim for buying me a drink before I ran to the airport!