Online Webinar | 16 June 2026 | 10:00 -11:30 CEST | 06:00pm – 7:30pm AEST
On 16 June 2026, the Net-Zero Industries Mission (NIM), in collaboration with the Green Powered Future Mission, brought together 60 participants from across industry, policy, and research for a timely and forward-looking discussion on the electrification of hard-to-abate industries in Asia.
Asia at the Center of Industrial Transformation
With its rapidly growing economies and dominant role in global manufacturing, Asia is pivotal to the transition toward climate-neutral industry. Energy-intensive sectors such as steel, cement, and chemicals are facing increasing pressure to decarbonise while maintaining competitiveness and ensuring reliable energy supply.
The webinar highlighted a clear message: clean electricity is emerging as a cornerstone of industrial transformation, enabling both emissions reduction and long-term economic resilience.
Key Messages from Global Experts
In their keynote presentations, Riccardo Savigliano (UNIDO) and Nicholas Salmon (IEA) provided a comprehensive overview of global trends and system-level challenges:
- Industrial electrification is gaining momentum, but must be combined with energy efficiency and low-carbon power supply to deliver meaningful emissions reductions.
- The global energy system is entering an “age of electricity,” characterised by rapid growth in electricity demand, particularly across Asia.
- Despite technological progress, significant barriers remain, including grid capacity constraints, investment risks, and limited business cases for high-temperature electrification technologies.
- At the same time, declining renewable energy costs and ongoing innovation are opening new pathways for scaling near-zero industrial production.
From Strategy to Implementation: Industry Perspectives
Industry speakers provided concrete examples of how these transformations are already being implemented:
- Eiji Ohira (Kawasaki Gas Turbine Europe) highlighted the growing role of hydrogen in decarbonising high-temperature industrial processes and presented developments in global hydrogen supply chains and infrastructure.
- Yi Yang (Tianrun New Energy) demonstrated how digitalisation, artificial intelligence, and integrated energy systems can enable zero-carbon industrial parks, improve energy efficiency, and support real-time emissions management.
- Shane Miller (Meranti Green Steel) showcased an innovative cross-border value chain for low-carbon steel production, combining renewable energy, hydrogen-based direct reduction, and electric arc furnaces—achieving emissions reductions of over 70% compared to conventional processes.
Creating the Conditions for Scale
A central theme throughout the discussion was that technology alone is not sufficient. Scaling industrial electrification across Asia will require a supportive ecosystem, including:
- Access to affordable and reliable renewable electricity
- Grid readiness and flexibility to manage increased demand
- Clear standards and definitions for low-carbon industrial products
- Strong policy frameworks and investment signals to support market development
As emphasised by the speakers, aligning these elements is critical to unlocking large-scale deployment and accelerating the transition.
Collaboration for a Net-Zero Future
The webinar, moderated by NIM Mission Coordinator Dr Alan Monaghan (Net-Zero Industries Mission) and co-hosted with Yaxuan Jiao (Green Powered Future Mission), highlighted the importance of international collaboration. By bringing together global institutions, industry leaders, and regional perspectives, the session fostered valuable exchange on how to link industrial decarbonisation with the transformation of future energy systems.
Looking Ahead
The discussion made clear that the question is no longer whether hard-to-abate industries will electrify, but how quickly and effectively this transition can be achieved.
As Asia continues to shape global industrial development, accelerating electrification will be key to ensuring a competitive, resilient, and net-zero future.
Watch the webinar recording
Presentations
- Welcome Remarks by Alan Monaghan, Net-Zero Industries Mission
- Keynote: Markets and Global Trends for Near-Zero Industry in Asia – Riccardo Savigliano, Chief of the Energy Systems and Industrial Decarbonization Unit, UNIDO
- Keynote: Industrial Transformation in the Age of Electricity – Nicholas Salmon, Energy Modeller, International Energy Agency (IEA)
- Industry Perspectives on Industrial Electrification, Clean Power Integration and Enabling Policy Frameworks across Asia
- Kawasaki Heavy Industries’ Hydrogen Initiative – Eiji Ohira (Kawasaki Gas Turbine Europe),
- Digitalization and integrated energy services to break through the bottlenecks in the implementation of zero-carbon parks – Yi Yang (Tianrun New Energy),
- Renewable Energy and the Future of Industrial Competitiveness – Shane Miller (Meranti Green Steel)
Speakers
Dr Alan Monaghan, NIM Mission Coordinator
Dr Alan Monaghan, Global Mission Coordinator of the Net-Zero Industries Mission, is a physicist, specialising in developing and delivering executive level strategy and change programs, from organisational restructures and project delivery capability establishment, through to the special risk management needed for technology development, implementation and commercialisation. He is currently the Senior Vice President of the global Technology & Expert Solutions team for Worley’s Resources sector, where Worley’s global SME pool is engaged to provide high priority customer solutions, across innovation and solution validation, through to project delivery, including leading their First of a Kind technology delivery and external technology partnership programs.
Yibo Wang, GPFM Co-lead China
Yibo Wang is Director and Research Professor at the Department of Renewable Energy Power Generation Systems, Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is the Pillar 1 “Affordable and Reliable VRE” lead of the Green Powered Future Mission, Chair of the Expert Group for the Renewable Energy Special Project under the 14th Five-Year Plan National Key R&D Program, Member of the Smart Grid Science & Technology Strategy Research Working Group, Ministry of Science and Technology. With over 20 years of experience in renewable energy power generation systems and grid integration technologies, he has led several key national R&D programs and led the team to develop the world’s first high-power PV DC boost grid-connected converter.
Riccardo Savigliano, Chief of the Energy System and Decarbonization Unit, UNIDO
Riccardo Savigliano joined UNIDO in 2008 in the department of Montreal Protocol, and currently serves as Chief of Energy Systems and Industrial Decarbonization Unit. Among several assignments at UNIDO in the field of sustainable industrial development and environmental protection, Riccardo is proud to mention that he also served as UNIDO Rotational Gender Officer in 2018. Riccardo holds a PHD in Plant Pathology and Pest Management and conducted researches on economic impact of businesses and productive activities to local communities, including innovative models to identify and quantify externalities from regenerative businesses, sustainable land use and natural resources management.
Nicholas Salmon, Energy Modeller in the Demand Sectors, IEA
Nick is an energy modeller in the Demand Sectors Unit at the IEA, where he has worked since 2024. He is responsible for modelling and analysis of the industry sector, with particular focus on heavy industrial sectors including cement and chemicals as part of the World Energy Outlook. He holds a Bachelor and Masters in Chemical Engineering from the University of Queensland and a PhD from the University of Oxford, where he researched the role of electrolytic hydrogen for industry decarbonisation.
Eiji Ohira, Head of Hydrogen Business Development, Kawasaki Gas Turbine Europe GmbH
Eiji Ohira is European Representative of JH2A, and Strategy Architect / Head of Hydrogen Business Development of the Kawasaki Gas Turbine Europe, affiliate company of the Kawasaki Heavy Industries. He is responsible for developing, executing and coordinating KHI’s global hydrogen business. Before joining KHI, he was a general manager for NEDO’s research, development and demonstration projects on fuel cells and hydrogen over a decade. He represented Japan in international hydrogen forums such as the International Energy Agency’s Technical Cooperation Program (IEA Hydrogen TCP, Advanced Fuel Cells TCP) and the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE).
Yi Yang, Head of Energy & Carbon Solutions, Tianrun New Energy, China
Yi Yang, Assistant General Manager and Head of Energy & Carbon Solutions at Tianrun New Energy, a subsidiary of Goldwind Group. She started her career at Goldwind Group in 2011, focusing on market and public relations. Her current work centers on load-side business, wind-solar-storage integration, and carbon-electricity synergy. With extensive hands-on experience in project execution and regional operations, Yi is a results-driven leader in the new energy and integrated energy sectors. As a female executive in clean energy, she is committed to advancing low-carbon solutions and empowering more women to lead the energy transition.
Shane Miller, Senior Manager of Constructions, Meranti Green Steel, Thailand
Shane Miller is Senior Manager of Construction and Project Management at Meranti Green Steel, where he supports the development and delivery of the company’s large-scale green steel and infrastructure projects. With extensive experience across major industrial and energy developments, he brings a strong background in project execution, contract management, stakeholder engagement, and commercial delivery. A strategic and results-driven leader, Shane is focused on delivering safe, high-quality outcomes while fostering strong partnerships with clients and stakeholders.
Moderator
Dr Alan Monaghan, NIM Mission Coordinator
Dr Alan Monaghan, Global Mission Coordinator of the Net-Zero Industries Mission, is a physicist, specialising in developing and delivering executive level strategy and change programs, from organisational restructures and project delivery capability establishment, through to the special risk management needed for technology development, implementation and commercialisation. He is currently the Senior Vice President of the global Technology & Expert Solutions team for Worley’s Resources sector, where Worley’s global SME pool is engaged to provide high priority customer solutions, across innovation and solution validation, through to project delivery, including leading their First of a Kind technology delivery and external technology partnership programs.