The Asian Development Bank ( ADB ) and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet ( GEAPP ) have agreed on a grant to establish the Enhancing Access to BESS for Low-carbon Economies ( Enable ) platform, which will be dedicated to accelerating battery storage deployment across the Asia-Pacific region by pooling and concentrating the human and financial resources to fast-track BESS ( battery energy storage system ) projects.

The grant, administered by the ADB, consists of US$500,000 in financing from the Smart Energy Innovation Fund under the Clean Energy Financing Partnership Facility and US$250,000 from the GEAPP.

The Enable platform will focus on accelerating BESS deployment through a comprehensive approach that, the organizations say, includes technical assistance, pilot project preparation and capacity-building initiatives for key stakeholders across the energy sector. As well, it will help address key barriers to BESS adoption, including lack of technical understanding, high capital costs, concerns about cost impacts on consumers, and limited access to concessional financing – all critical for the region to achieve its green transition goals.

Over an initial three-year period, the platform will prioritize Vietnam, Mongolia and Cambodia, with a customized approach based on each country’s stage of BESS development. With plans to scale up, the platform aims to expand its reach to additional countries in the region over time.

Initial focus areas include private-led grid-scale BESS integration studies, policy frameworks, procurement guidelines, technical standards, application of digital tools like artificial intelligence, and innovative business models for storage deployment. Countries will receive targeted support for integrating BESS with their growing renewable capacity.

The Enable platform will also, the organizations note, bring together diverse stakeholders, including other development partners, and innovative financing approaches to establish a replicable project development model that will support the region’s long-term clean energy transition while creating economic benefits.

The need is urgent in Asia-Pacific, the organizations point out, where renewable energy is expanding rapidly. The renewables capacity in the region is expected to grow by nearly 430 gigawatts from 2023 to 2028. Solar installations will account for two-thirds of the growth, the majority of which will be from utility-scale deployments.

With this significant expansion of renewable energy, the organizations argue, BESS solutions are essential for grid stability and renewable energy optimization.

“The Enable platform addresses key barriers by providing technical expertise, project development support and innovative financing solutions that will help countries integrate more renewable energy into their grids,” says Cindy Cisneros-Tiangco, the ADB’s energy sector office director of emerging areas. “With energy demand growing rapidly across the region, battery storage represents a critical technology for ensuring stable, reliable and clean power systems.”