“What we are currently witnessing is not an energy transition, but an energy expansion that prioritises corporate profit over the planet,” said Sean Sweeney from Trade Unions for Energy Democracy (TUED) during the South Asia-Pacific Regional Policy Meeting held in Bali, Indonesia, from July 29 to 31, 2024, organised by Public Services International.  

The meeting brought together 59 trade union leaders and activists from countries including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Nepal, South Korea, the USA, the UK, and South Africa. The central focus was on advocating for a just energy transition and the importance of a public pathway in achieving this goal. Sean Sweeney stressed that supporting a public pathway—one that rejects a profit-driven, neoliberal approach to energy—is crucial. “Privatisation will only hinder the energy transition and plunge the Global South into deeper debt, reducing investments needed to shift towards a low-carbon economy,” he added. 

TUED’s analysis calls for a public pathway to energy transition, guided by three key principles: 

1. Reclaim and Restore: Public companies must be reinstated as the primary institutions responsible for implementing the energy transition. They should be transparent, accountable, and respectful of workers' rights. 

2. Decommodification: This principle involves ending the practice of tying revenues and profits to the sale of electricity by volume. Instead, it should prioritise social and ecological value over profit. 

3. Demarketisation: This calls for the reversal of neoliberal laws and regulations that enable energy corporations to operate with commercial priorities. The focus should be on creating non-commercial, socially driven energy systems. 

In her opening address, Indah Budiarti from PSI emphasised that PSI has always defended public services against privatisation. She pointed out that Independent Power Producers (IPPs) in the energy sector use legally binding Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to siphon off taxpayers’ money to benefit shareholders. “The IPP-PPA model has proven to be a disgrace for too many communities,” she said, underscoring PSI's full support for the public pathway approach. 

During the meeting, participants discussed the history and evolution of the TUED South Platform over the past two years, highlighting key milestones and outcomes from previous meetings in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Insights from these regions provided a foundation for the Asia-Pacific regional meeting. 

Speakers such as SungHee OH from the Korean Public Services Transport Workers Union (KPTU) shared experiences of fighting privatisation in South Korea, where policies imposed by the International Monetary Fund in the late 1990s led to massive outsourcing of workers. This fuelled resistance against privatisation of electricity utilities and sparked a broader movement for public energy transition. Andy Wijaya, General Secretary of Persatuan Pegawai PT PLN Indonesia Power (PP-IP), updated participants on the struggle to defend public energy in Indonesia. He highlighted the adverse impacts of liberalisation on public services, particularly in the electricity sector. 

A significant part of the meeting was dedicated to exploring the challenges and opportunities for women activists within the energy sector. Representatives from India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines discussed the critical roles women play in advancing sustainable energy initiatives and the obstacles they encounter. The session emphasised the importance of supporting women’s leadership in shaping the future of energy policies and practices within the trade union movement. 

The meeting delved into the historical trajectory of neoliberal electricity market reforms, beginning with the World Bank’s “standard model” initiated in the 1990s. Discussions focused on how public energy companies were “unbundled,” marketised, and commodified, and how for-profit IPPs gained a major foothold. Participants debated what a plausible trade union approach to reclaiming national and regional utilities under full public control might look like. They also considered whether the neoliberal reforms could be reversed and what unions should fight for in the short to medium term. 

One of the key discussions centered on TUED’s analysis that the region (and the world) is witnessing energy expansion, not transition. Fossil fuel use is at record levels, and emissions continue to rise. The meeting reflected on the political challenge posed by rising energy use in the Asia-Pacific region and the disconnect between these trends and the “net zero” emissions targets adopted by countries like China, India, and Indonesia. 

The Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) of Indonesia, Vietnam, and South Africa were also discussed, with participants noting that these initiatives continue the neoliberal structural adjustment policies that began in the late 1980s and 1990s. Such policies increase debt while imposing conditionalities to create an “enabling environment” for the private sector. Participants examined potential domestic financing alternatives, such as wealth taxes, as well as the potential significance of China’s growing lending capacity as part of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). 

Moving Forward 

The closing session of the three-day meeting reflected on the discussions and proposed an outline for a 3-5 year work plan, which may include training, campaigns, and other interventions to help build regional solidarity and improve collective understanding. 

The meeting did more than just strengthen the solidarity of trade unions in the region; it provided strategic guidance for the future. The discussions were rich and insightful, clarifying that addressing climate change must involve every stakeholder, with workers at the forefront. The central theme was the rejection of privatisation and the neoliberal approach to the energy sector, emphasising that public control and active participation of the people is the best way to achieve a just energy transition.