SINGAPORE: Southeast Asia is facing mounting pressure to turn a long-discussed regional power grid into reality, energy experts say, as rising electricity demand and geopolitical tensions intensify the need for deeper energy cooperation.Speaking to CNA on the sidelines of Ecosperity Week 2026 in Singapore on Wednesday (May 20), regional energy leaders said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Power Grid is increasingly being viewed as an economic and energy security necessity.While acknowledging stronger political backing for the project in recent years, they warned that Southeast Asia still faces major hurdles including regulatory fragmentation, financing gaps and weak grid connectivity.URGENCY AROUND ENERGY SECURITYScott Morris, vice-president for East and Southeast Asia and the Pacific at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), said rising geopolitical tensions have made regional energy cooperation more pressing.Ongoing tensions in the Middle East have renewed concerns over disruptions to global fuel supply routes such as the Strait of Hormuz, through which a substantial share of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments pass.The situation is “bringing to the political forefront the concept of energy security and resilience, and that squarely is what (the ASEAN Power Grid) is ultimately about,” Morris said.