Speeches
Opening Remarks by Ambassador Carol Rodley at GMS Energy Conference
Intercontinenal Hotel – Phnom Penh
September 29, 2009
Your Excellency Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen. It is my great pleasure to welcome so many of you here this morning to participate in this important Conference on Energy Development in the Greater Mekong Subregion.
The participants in this conference represent a diverse range of expertise within the energy sector including as producers, distributors, technology suppliers, financiers, legal advisors, engineers, consultants, and government officials.
We are happy to have the participation of publicly traded American companies GE and Chevron, which have both kindly agreed to sponsor the lunches for the conference, as well as ConocoPhillips, AES, Schlumberger, Dupont, and Rockwell Automation. We have also gathered together scores of other American, Cambodian, Thai, Vietnamese, Singaporean, Malaysian, Chinese, and other companies that are interested to contribute to the development of the GMS energy sector.
Participation of such esteemed multilateral institutions as the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, and the Mekong River Commission will also add valuable insight to the discussions and we are honored to have their support.
I am very pleased to be hosting this conference on energy development in the Greater Mekong Subregion fresh on the heels of Secretary Clinton’s participation in the first ever Lower Mekong Ministerial Meeting in Thailand.
It gives me additional satisfaction to know that after a two-year effort we are having this regional conference on energy here in Cambodia. Energy prices here are amongst the highest in Asia and connectivity is one of the lowest, but the government has ambitious plans to expand the country’s electrical production and connectivity.
The Greater Mekong Subregion
In the United States we have a saying first placed on the great seal of the United States in 1782 by Congress, “E pluribus unum,” out of many, one. The words were meant by the founding fathers of our country to show the common destiny of the states. This is perhaps why the GMS economic cooperation scheme resonates so well with me. It is rooted in an idea that through cooperation between neighbors, all countries can benefit.
Under this GMS Economic Cooperation program, development of the energy sector in one country will be able to benefit the development of all countries through the most efficient use of the natural resources within the region.
The GMS economies are undergoing multiple transitions: from agriculture to industry and services, and rural to urban migration. These transitions will drive energy demand growth in coming decades.
The challenges facing the GMS in the energy sector are not unique: high economic growth of the region is driving the demand for energy whereas almost 50 million people in the GMS lack access to electricity.
In the next decade, the demand for energy at national levels is expected to continue to rise between 7 percent and 16 percent per annum or at rates much faster than projected growth of economic activities, potentially straining existing power systems, but opening opportunities to regional energy producers.
GMS energy infrastructure will require billions of dollars of investment if energy supply is to keep pace with energy demand. The good news for GMS countries is that the companies and individuals we have gathered together in this room today have the skills, technologies, and resources to transform the GMS energy sector.
The Importance of Energy for Regional Development
Energy coupled with innovative technology equals productivity and economic growth. As the region integrates energy systems and trade regimes, with areas rich in certain energy resources able to share these resources with resource-poorer neighbors, it will certainly become a more attractive destination for investments in manufacturing and other energy-intensive industries which can lead to further regional economic growth.
A look back at the history of the United States can be instructive when trying to determine a way forward for the region. While the United States today has the most advanced energy infrastructure in the world, it was not always that way. Nearly a century ago, in 1907, only 8 percent of U.S. homes had electricity, and only 3,000 automobiles plied the roads of the country. It was through forward-looking policies that fostered cooperation between American states coupled with great technological innovation that led to the mid-twentieth century conditions wherein virtually every home in the United States had electricity and lighting, and the automobile and airplane redefined transport and notions of “distance.”
These revolutions in energy and transportation, led to changes in the economy and lifestyles, helping the United States to become the most productive economy in the world.
Energy Development and Climate Change
GMS countries today are in different stages of development, with some possessing more advanced infrastructure than others. One advantage developing countries have over more developed countries is that they can develop their infrastructure anew, without transitioning through more primitive technologies as the developed countries once did.
In developing energy infrastructure today, countries must assess a myriad of economic, social, and political factors that were never considered in the past, such as environmental damage and climate change.
Almost every country in the world has large-scale domestic sources of renewable energy, the GMS region is no exception. The next generation of electricity is likely to be much cleaner -- because it must -- and we will see new technologies redirecting the energy sector into newer, more sustainable directions, through the use of wind, biogas, biomass, geothermal, solar, ocean currents, and other forms of renewable energy.
I am very pleased to announce that in addition to the Conference on Energy Development in the Greater Mekong Subregion, which we are inaugurating today, early next year the U.S. Department of State in conjunction with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency will host a Conference on Clean Energy at a still undetermined location in Southeast Asia. (NOTE: We would like to include the location and dates of the conference if they’re approved in time. END NOTE.). That conference is intended to look more closely at how the U.S. and ASEAN member countries can work together to expand this new energy revolution in Southeast Asia.
You all recognize the importance of developing the energy sector in the region by choosing to participate in this conference. Developing the GMS energy sector can lay the much-needed foundations for increased poverty alleviation and economic growth. Your participation in this conference shows you are well attuned to the potential that exists in this region and are interested to learn more about where your company may assist to overcome the challenges.
I encourage you to think about the presentations of the speakers we have gathered from throughout the GMS region and the United States, and try to interact with as many of the esteemed conference participants we have gathered together today as possible. We have included many networking opportunities for you to interact with each other which we hope you will find useful in your efforts to learn more about how you can participate in developing the regional energy sector for the ultimate benefit of the people of the region.
I would finally like to thank the conference organizers for working so tirelessly on this conference, and to thank the Royal Government of Cambodia for its cooperation in helping us to host this important regional conference here in Phnom Penh.
I warmly welcome you all, and wish you all a successful conference.
