BOHOL, 22 January 2026 – The Special Senior Officials Meeting on Energy (Special SOME) 2026 and Its Associated Meetings were convened on 20–22 January in Bohol, the Philippines, under the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairship, with participation from all 11 ASEAN Member States.
The Meetings brought together ASEAN Senior Energy Officials, the Deputy Secretary-General for the ASEAN Economic Community of the ASEAN Secretariat, Head of Delegations from Sub-Sector Networks and Specialised Energy Bodies, including the ASEAN Power Grid Consultative Committee (APGCC), Heads of ASEAN Power Utilities/Authorities (HAPUA), the ASEAN Council on Petroleum and Energy (ASCOPE), the ASEAN Energy Regulators’ Network (AERN), and the Executive Director of ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), to align priorities and set the regional direction for energy cooperation as ASEAN begins implementing the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) 2026-2030, with ACE serving as the implementing arm of APAEC.
Discussions focused on translating Leaders’ and Ministers’ guidance into actionable sectoral priorities, including the endorsement of the ASEAN energy sector’s 2026 Annual Priorities, review of follow-up actions from the ASEAN Summit and the 43rd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM), and the assessment of 2025 progress and 2026 work plans across key programme areas—renewable energy, energy efficiency and conservation, oil and gas security, civilian nuclear energy, and regional energy policy and planning—alongside strengthened cooperation with Dialogue Partners and International Organisations.
Strengthening regional interconnection remained a central focus, with substantive exchanges on the operationalisation of the Enhanced ASEAN Power Grid (APG) MoU, the advancement of multilateral power trade, APG financing, and progress of flagship interconnection initiatives, alongside preparations for the 9th ASEAN Energy Outlook.
The Meetings also featured the SOME-ADB Information Session on Energy Resilience, which supported deeper regional understanding of system, climate, and supply-chain resilience, and explored potential regional deliverables to strengthen resilient and interconnected energy systems. The Meetings concluded with the 28th ACE Governing Council Meeting, which discussed the ACE Strategic Plan 2026-2030 in support of APAEC implementation.
As ASEAN advances a more resilient, secure, and interconnected energy future, stronger collaboration and support from Dialogue Partners, International Organisations, and stakeholders will be instrumental in translating regional priorities into scalable and measurable outcomes.
Photo credit: Public Affairs Office (PAO) of the National Organizing Council (NOC) of the Philippines.
