Climate strategist launches new ASEAN energy alliance with $4m backing

Singapore, 16 Sept 2025

Singapore-based regional clean energy strategist Liming Qiao has launched a new initiative to tackle one of Southeast Asia’s biggest barriers to renewable energy growth — grid flexibility and energy storage. Qiao, who is a permanent resident of Singapore, has over two decades of experience in Asian climate and renewable energy leadership, is spearheading the first-ever coalition to tackle this challenge head-on. Qiao, currently Chief Strategy Officer in Asia at the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), is establishing the Future Energy Storage & System Integration Alliance (FESSIA). The organisation will convene industry players, utilities, civil society and development financiers to accelerate storage deployment and prepare ASEAN’s power systems for high renewable penetration to meet surging demand and cut emissions in the world’s fourth-largest energy market. 

The move follows Qiao’s recognition as a 2025 Climate Breakthrough Award recipient — one of only five individuals worldwide each to receive the US$4 million grant, the largest climate award for individuals. The funding will serve as seed capital to rapidly build the new organisation.

The San Francisco-based philanthropy has supported leaders behind the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and Power Shift Africa, among others. Former US Vice President Al Gore, congratulating this year’s awardees, said: “To solve the climate crisis, we need leaders who are thinking big to help reshape policy, economic, and social systems in order to create a sustainable world.”

Significantly, Qiao said, “grid bottlenecks are the overlooked challenge of Asia’s energy transition. By bringing together industry, utilities, and development partners, we can unlock storage and system solutions critical for scaling renewables in the region.” FESSIA aims to operate as a multi-stakeholder alliance, convening renewable developers, utilities, multilateral development banks and think tanks to develop regional solutions.

A hard launch is planned for early 2026, with initial partnerships expected to be announced later this year. Singapore has positioned itself as a hub for green finance and clean energy leadership, and Qiao’s transition from GWEC to FESSIA adds further weight to the city-state’s growing role in Asia’s energy transition. ASEAN, the world’s fourth-largest energy consumer, faces rising demand but lags on energy storage and flexible system integration.