On October 7th and 8th, 2026 in Manila, the Philippines, Timor-Leste’s Secretary of State for Electricity, Water and Sanitation, Santos Noronha, represented the country at the 44th ASEAN Energy Ministers’ Meeting (AMEM), where regional priorities for energy security, connectivity, resilience, and the energy transition were analysed.
The meeting took place under the Philippine ASEAN Chairmanship and the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation 2026–2030 (APAEC), which sets out the organisation’s sector priorities for the next five years.
In his address, the Secretary of State thanked the Member States’ Energy Ministers, the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC), the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), and sectoral bodies for their support for Timor-Leste’s integration into regional energy cooperation mechanisms.
In this context, Santos Noronha highlighted the recent integration of Electricity of Timor-Leste (EDTL, EP) into the Heads of ASEAN Power Utilities and Authorities (HAPUA), expressing Timor-Leste’s “sincere gratitude” to HAPUA, all ASEAN Member States, the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC), the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), and EDL Lao, in its capacity as HAPUA Chair, for their invaluable support and constructive guidance in facilitating the accession of Electricity of Timor-Leste (EDTL) to the HAPUA family at the 42nd HAPUA Council Meeting, held in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic in September 2026.
During the ministerial meeting, Timor-Leste also endorsed accession to regional energy cooperation instruments, namely the ASEAN Petroleum Safety Agreement (APSA), the Memorandum of Understanding on the ASEAN Power Grid (APG), and the Memorandum of Understanding on the Trans-ASEAN Gas Pipeline (TAGP).
The Secretary of State said Timor-Leste is committed to concluding the accession process to these instruments later this year, following the completion of the necessary internal procedures and the deposit of the instruments of accession.
Timor-Leste’s participation in the 44th AMEM follows its accession to ASEAN as the 11th Member State and marks its first participation in this ministerial meeting as a full member of the organisation.
The Timorese delegation also included the President of the National Petroleum Authority, Gualdino da Carmo; the Director-General for Electricity, Water and Sanitation, Maria Arlinda; and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of EDTL, EP, Marito Ferreira.
The Manila meetings also included meetings between ASEAN officials and external partners, international organisations, and specialised energy sector bodies, as well as the ASEAN Energy Business Forum 2026. Discussions covered, among other topics, the implementation of the ASEAN Power Grid, energy security, investment, renewable energy, and the strengthening of regional cooperation in the energy sector.