On August 1, ORF America and the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) convened Building the Clean-Tech Corridor: An IBSA+Indonesia Roundtable on Clean Trade and Supply Chain Collaboration in Jakarta, on the sidelines of the Indonesia Net Zero Summit 2026. The session brought together ambassadors, government officials, industry leaders, researchers and non-profit organizations at a moment when supply chain diversification, trade rules, and technology standards are reshaping the economics of the global energy transition.

As critical minerals, batteries, solar and wind manufacturing, and green hydrogen increasingly move across borders, the four countries hold complementary but currently disconnected strengths. Against this backdrop, the roundtable, the fourth convening of ORF America's IBSA+Indonesia Green Transitions Initiative, examined how the grouping can move from parallel national strategies toward a coordinated clean-tech corridor built on harmonized standards, mutual certification, and coordinated procurement.

Among others, speakers included:

• Welcome Remarks: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, Energy and Climate Program, ORF America 

• Keynote Remarks: H.E. Sandeep Chakravorty, Ambassador of India to Indonesia; and H.E. George Monteiro Prata, Ambassador of Brazil to Indonesia

• Presentation: Medha Prasanna, Junior Fellow and Program Coordinator, Energy & Climate, ORF America

• Special Remarks: Anindita Satria Surya, Vice President of Transition Energy and Climate Change, PT PLN (Persero)

• Panel Perspectives by Satya Widya Yudha, Member of the Board, National Energy Council of the Republic of Indonesia; Moekti Handajani (Kuki) Soejachmoen, Executive Director, Indonesia Research Institute for Decarbonization (IRID); Paul Butarbutar, Executive Director, Indonesia Climate and Growth Dialogue (ICGD); Kaustubh Deshpande, Founding Partner, Imoto; Chairul Hudaya, Director of the Directorate of Innovation and High-Impact Research, University of Indonesia; and Michael Abimanyu, Executive Director, Indonesia Data Center Provider Organization (IDPRO)

• Closing Remarks: Dr. Dino Patti Djalal, Founder and Chairman, Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI)

Key Takeaways

Why a Clean-Tech Corridor?

• An Industrial Transition, Not Just an Energy One: Speakers framed the energy transition as a fundamentally industrial question. The key issues are who manufactures clean technologies, under what standards, with what financing, and under whose trading rules. If left to national strategies alone, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Indonesia risk developing in parallel rather than combining their complementary strengths into a connected clean technology value chain.

• Moving Beyond Extraction: Multiple speakers, warned against repeating the extractive pattern of exporting raw minerals and feedstock while importing higher-value finished technology. A clean-tech corridor was framed as a vehicle for local processing, manufacturing, jobs, and innovation rather than continued raw-material dependence.

• The Cost of Fragmentation: New data presented by ORF America identified three structural traps working against the grouping: a cost-of-capital penalty, where identical projects finance at two to three times the rate of Europe and North America; high concentration, with a single country dominating critical segments of the battery and clean-tech manufacturing chain; and an offtake gap, where projects with committed buyers execute at high rates while those without buyers stall — meaning demand certainty, not execution capacity, is the binding constraint.

• Trade Measures Cut Both Ways: Participants noted that new and shifting trade barriers, including carbon border adjustments and recently imposed US tariffs that affected a nearly US$500 million Indonesian solar export market, show why the four countries need a coordinated response to external measures. Rather than absorbing compliance costs individually, IBSA+Indonesia countries can work together on standards, certification, market access, and trade diplomacy.

What Would the Corridor Look Like?

• Four Pillars of a Shared Architecture: Indonesian stakeholders proposed a policy framework built on regulatory interoperability (shared definitions and mutual recognition of standards), strategic industrial coordination (complementary value chains rather than resource competition), collective market creation (joint procurement and demand aggregation), and a coordinated response to external trade measures.

• Leadership Already in Place: The grouping does not need to build clean-tech leadership from scratch because it already holds significant strengths. Beyond China and the United States, India is emerging as a major player in solar cell and wind manufacturing and is positioned to become a leading EV market by 2030. Indonesia supplies the majority of the world’s mined nickel and has one of the largest geothermal capacities globally. Brazil is the world’s second-largest biofuels producer, while South Africa holds the world’s largest platinum reserves, which are critical for fuel cells. The task ahead is to connect this leadership, not create it.

• An Advisory Group to Carry the Work Forward: ORF America announced the launch of an IBSA+Indonesia Intergovernmental Advisory Group — twelve serving and former officials, three from each country — designed to translate the corridor concept from analysis into government-level action, with an initial opportunity map intended to feed into upcoming G20, COP, and other multilateral processes.

• The Grid as the Binding Constraint: PLN’s remarks underscored that generation alone is not the hardest part of energy transitions. The grid is equally critical. In Indonesia, where renewable resources are often located far from demand centers, PLN outlined plans for a super grid build-out involving tens of thousands of circuit-kilometers of new transmission by 2034, alongside a US$200 billion investment plan. This grid infrastructure will form the physical backbone on which any clean-tech corridor will depend.

How Can IBSA+Indonesia Make It Real?

• Closing the Financing Gap: Industry speakers argued that capital for cross-border clean-tech ventures in the region is not absent, but intermittent and unpredictable. This uncertainty often forces companies to use scarce engineering and R&D budgets simply to survive financing gaps rather than to scale. A corridor financing facility, supported by the four governments or development banks, was proposed as a way to provide more continuous funding for innovation, project development, and early-stage growth.

• Redefining "Local": Local content rules often treat corridor partners as foreign suppliers, which weakens the case for IBSA+Indonesia as a genuine cooperation bloc. They proposed defining “local” based on where engineering capabilities, manufacturing value, and technical know-how are developed, rather than only by ownership nationality. This definitional shift was seen as central to whether incentive regimes strengthen the corridor or fragment it.

• Common Standards for Trade to Flow: Speakers noted that as the EU battery passport mandate takes effect in February 2027, IBSA+Indonesia countries should not wait for external markets to define compliance requirements. They called for the four countries to agree on shared data standards covering battery state of health reporting, traceability, and lifecycle emissions, so that clean-tech trade within the corridor can grow on the basis of rules shaped by its own members.

• Bridging Research and Market: Indonesia’s university sector highlighted a persistent gap between invention and commercialization, with tens of thousands of registered IP rights but limited pathways to market. Speakers proposed expanding university led technology transfer, startup incubation, and shared testing infrastructure to help regional partners reduce commercialization risks and lower the cost of market entry.

• Aggregating Capital at Scale: Industry voices closed the session with a direct appeal: the four countries already have the technical capability to build a clean-tech corridor; what is missing is capital deployed at the scale China and the US are investing. A jointly backed fund targeting long-term mineral processing and manufacturing investment was proposed as the next concrete step.

• A Test of Middle-Power Cooperation: The discussion closed by framing the corridor as a practical test of whether global middle powers can move from shared interests to sustained cooperation. Participants emphasized that IBSA+Indonesia will need a clear driver, political commitment, and a focused starting point to become operational.

On July 22, ORF America hosted an AI trivia night with Theodor Ross, Senior AI Research Engineer at MITRE. Teams put their knowledge to the test with questions on AI regulation, bias, history, and more.

Speakers:

• Theodor Ross, Senior AI Research Engineer, MITRE

• Moderator: Katherine Salinas, Senior Program Coordinator, ORF America

On July 22, ORF America and the RAND Corporation hosted a closed, virtual roundtable to discuss the implications of AI infrastructure and data centers being targeted and damaged in Persian Gulf countries during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The conversation focused on how the conflict and rising physical security risks to data centers and related communications and energy infrastructure are shaping the global AI infrastructure buildout.

The meeting brought together a group of experts from government and the private sector to assess how emerging physical and hybrid threats, including drones, missiles, and cyber attacks, are affecting investment decisions, insurance, resilience, and security considerations for AI infrastructure in the Gulf and beyond. Key questions emerged regarding responsibility for the costs associated with data loss and service disruption, operational continuity and data sovereignty considerations, and potential mechanisms to mitigate risk in an era of exceptionally high global demand for AI compute capacity.  

On Tuesday, June 30, ORF America, in partnership with the U.S.-India Business Council, hosted a small, private roundtable discussion with Ms. Abanti Sankaranarayanan, Group President, Global Public Affairs, Mahindra Group, during her visit to Washington, D.C. The discussion focused on India’s economic diplomacy in a shifting global trade landscape, in particular the recent series of free trade agreements that India has signed, how Indian industry is viewing more open trade channels, how the private sector is managing geopolitical uncertainty and supply chain disruptions, and opportunities for deeper U.S.-India commercial cooperation.

On June 24, ORF America hosted a private roundtable on India's economic management amid global turbulence. The event brought together senior economists, policymakers, and financial experts to assess India's macroeconomic resilience, it’s response to the ongoing Middle East crisis, and the long-term challenges and opportunities facing the country as it works towards becoming a high-income, developed economy by 2047, the centenary of its independence.

The roundtable took place against a backdrop of a complex and contradictory economic picture: strong GDP growth of 7.8% in the first quarter of 2026 alongside a depreciating rupee, rising food inflation, and declining net foreign direct investment (FDI). The discussion spanned India's near-term crisis management, its ambitious long-term development framework, and the reforms needed to sustain growth momentum.

Some key takeaways included:

• India demonstrated a textbook response to the Middle East crisis, but structural vulnerabilities remain. India entered the crisis from a position of strength, with large forex reserves, a fiscal deficit managed at 4.4%, and robust GDP growth, and responded with a phased approach: consumer protection measures in March, supply-side management in April, and longer-term planning in May. However, the crisis exposed persistent structural vulnerabilities, including insufficient strategic petroleum reserves, high dependence on fertilizer imports, and structural energy dependence on fossil fuels that will require sustained policy attention. Those issues are identified in the Viksit Bharat 2047 framework, centered around the five “Panch Pran” key pillars, as priority areas for India's long-term development.

• Trade integration and renewable energy offer major growth opportunities, but competitiveness, remains a constraint. New Free Trade Agreements, particularly with the EU and the UK, are expected to add approximately 1% to GDP, and when combined with labor market reforms, the impact could rise to almost 3%. India's renewable energy sector is also emerging as a significant source of quality employment, with the country already matching the United States in renewable energy jobs. Realizing these opportunities for India’s development will require the government to focus decisively on trade to ensure that market access translates into genuine competitiveness.

• AI, jobs, and skills represent the most pressing long-term challenge to India's growth model. Participants flagged artificial intelligence as a potentially disruptive force for India's services-led economy, with data showing a double-digit decline in job postings for AI-substitutable jobs — a trend that is especially pronounced among multinational corporations operating in India. Some internationally-connected Indian firms are already pivoting toward AI-complementary skills and moving up the value chain, but broader workforce upskilling has lagged badly. Addressing this will require urgent investment in education and skills development, alongside a strategic rethinking of whether India's growth model can continue to rely primarily on services or must more decisively embrace manufacturing and FDI.

Speakers

• Welcome Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America 

• Hemang Jani, Senior Advisor to Executive Director for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Sri Lanka, The World Bank

• Franziska Ohnsorge, Chief Economist for Asia, The World Bank

• Moderator: Anit Mukherjee, Senior Fellow, ORF America

On Friday, June 12, ORF America hosted a roundtable for a group of technology policy experts, government officials, and private sector representatives on the sidelines of the AmCham India doorknock. The roundtable enabled discussions on operationalizing the U.S.-India tech corridor, particularly on AI infrastructure and supply chains, with a focus on identifying opportunities for deeper collaboration, balancing AI sovereignty considerations, and addressing challenges to the ease of doing business in India in order to support the AI infrastructure build-out.  

On June 11, ORF America convened the fifth edition of its Future of Energy Breakfast series, bringing together senior leaders from government, industry, finance, and policy for a closed-door dialogue on how global disruptions, new energy powers, and shifting geopolitical strategies are reshaping energy diplomacy and the global energy order. 

The global energy system is no longer organized primarily around access to oil and gas resources. A new generation of energy powers is emerging across both fossil and non‑fossil energy systems. At the same time, the relationship between ‘the West and the Rest’ is becoming significantly more complex and fragmented. Advanced economies are not responding uniformly to these shifts. Similarly, ‘the Rest’ is far from a single bloc. Emerging economies across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East are pursuing increasingly diverse energy and geopolitical strategies. These shifts are unfolding alongside renewed concerns over maritime chokepoints, strategic infrastructure, and supply chain vulnerabilities. The implications extend far beyond energy markets alone. The emerging energy order will shape global trade, industrial competitiveness, technological leadership, investment flows, economic resilience, and geopolitical influence for decades to come. 

Key takeaways included:

• The assumptions underpinning the global energy system for three decades are being fundamentally reassessed. What was once organized around globalization, efficiency, and market integration is increasingly shaped by geopolitics, industrial strategy, and national security. The IEA estimated roughly $3.4 trillion in global energy investment in 2026, with nearly two-thirds flowing to renewables, efficiency, grids and other low-carbon sources and around 60% of new global energy demand now being met by clean energy. The shale revolution in the United States and the rise of Chinese renewable manufacturing have already redrawn the map of energy power — and the transition is accelerating. 

• China's dominance in the emerging electron economy is structural and far-reaching. Its total solar capacity is five times that of the United States and around ten times that of India, with similar dominance in wind, hydro, and solar manufacturing. On rare earths, China controls approximately 70% of mining production and roughly 90% of processing and refining capacity, while it controls approximately 90% of the world’s processing capacity for critical minerals. Beijing has demonstrated its willingness to deploy this leverage through export controls, with far-reaching consequences for the entire clean energy supply chain. 

• The shift from molecules to electrons is reordering the strategic logic of energy. Electrons are far less tradable than molecules, and renewables are inherently local, creating a natural tendency toward energy independence. Storage (batteries and grid infrastructure) is becoming the new strategic reserve, replacing oil stockpiles as the measure of energy resilience. These dynamics are pushing the world toward multipolarity faster than geopolitics alone, and a potential nuclear revival alongside early-stage thorium breakthroughs could further reshape long-run assumptions about fuel supply. 

• Traditional chokepoints have not been superseded; they have been joined by new ones. Recent disruptions in the Red Sea and around the Strait of Hormuz have demonstrated that shipping lanes and hard energy infrastructure remain as geopolitically consequential as ever, echoing the 1973 oil shock. At the same time, critical minerals, computing infrastructure, and electricity grids are emerging as a new layer of chokepoints — and with global data center electricity consumption expected to roughly double between 2024 and 2030, firm clean electricity is becoming the binding constraint on AI development and a source of decisive strategic advantage for countries such as Canada that can offer it at scale.

• These converging pressures are prompting a fundamental reframing of energy security itself. Participants questioned whether the concept remains adequate, or whether "industrial systems security" — including manufacturing, semiconductors, digital infrastructure, and electricity as an integrated whole — is now the more accurate lens. The migration of power from barrels to electrons and computing powers, participants noted, constitutes the largest supply chain disruption in history. 

• The West and the Rest are each more fragmented than the binary suggests. Advanced economies are pursuing overlapping but distinct approaches on LNG, critical minerals, and technology leadership, while emerging economies like India, Vietnam, the UAE, Brazil, and Indonesia seek strategic autonomy rather than alignment with any single camp. Several states are practicing "variable geometry": for instance, the UAE is managing relationships with Washington and Beijing simultaneously while signing an AI and quantum investment agreement with Canada. Trade, once a foundation of cooperation, has been reframed as a risk — a trust deficit participants identified as one of the defining challenges of the new energy order. 

• Corporations have emerged as major non-state actors in energy diplomacy, alongside NGOs, civil society, and new threat vectors. U.S. firms have procured over 150 GW of clean energy over the past decade, de-risking renewable projects in ways government policy alone has not. In Asia, the prospect of attracting corporate investment is generating competitive pressure to accelerate clean energy deployment, thus fostering a potential race to the top. Meanwhile, cyber threats and state-sponsored infrastructure attacks have expanded the definition of energy security well beyond supply alone. 

• Access to cooling has become as existential as access to heating, and the efficiency agenda has slowed down. Although four billion new air conditioning units are projected to be sold between 2018 and 2050, this is still insufficient to meet total need. Inefficient units displaced in advanced economies are routinely exported to lower-income markets in Africa and Asia, a problem that existing efficiency standards could address. The barrier is political will, not technical capacity. Energy efficiency more broadly represents the most accessible near-term gains available, yet has quietly vanished from diplomatic and policy conversations. 

• Private capital and household savings remain underutilized levers in the transition. Households in major economies collectively hold trillions of dollars in low‑yield savings instruments that are only intermittently connected to low‑carbon investment opportunities. Mobilizing a larger share of that capita l —alongside the corporate off‑taker models that have already proven effective in scaling clean energy — represents a significant, still underdeveloped opportunity. At the same time, the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities must remain central to climate‑finance frameworks, so that transition costs are allocated in line with historical responsibility and capacity rather than falling disproportionately on those least responsible for the problem.

• The world remains in the middle of a hard transition, and today’s institutions are poorly equipped for what comes next. Roughly four‑fifths of global primary energy still comes from fossil fuels, even as power shifts toward electrons, minerals, storage, and compute. The next great energy shock may not come from an oil chokepoint, but from a disruption to mineral processing, electricity grids, or digital infrastructure. The diplomacy of the coming decade will be shaped not only by the largest powers, but by hedging states, middle‑power coalitions and non‑state actors already filling the void left by a post‑1945 architecture that is struggling to adapt. In a world where a billion people are present at every negotiating table, the new energy diplomacy will be judged by whether it delivers affordable, reliable, and clean energy to the global majority.

Speakers:

• Opening Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America 

• Ambassador Robert F. Cekuta, Former U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan; Former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Energy Resources, U.S. Department of State

• Mohinder Gulati, Former Chief Operating Officer, UN-Sustainable Energy for All and Former Energy Advisor - Europe and Central Asia Region, World Bank

• Michael Paramathasan, Former Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs to Canada's Minister of Artificial Intelligence; Former Director, Office of the President of the Treasury Board of Canada

• Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America

Participants:

• Dr. Raul Alfaro-Pelico, Non-Resident Fellow, ORF America

• Caroline Arkalji, Junior Fellow, ORF America

• Parth Sarthi Bajaj, Research Associate, The Johns Hopkins University

• Kurt Donnelly, Adjunct Professor, American University

• Eric Gibbs, SVP, Global Programs, CEBA

• Jamie Kern, Policy Officer - Energy, European Union

• Maximo Miccinilli, Senior Partner, FleishmanHillard EU

• Medha Prasanna, Program Coordinator and Junior Fellow, ORF America

• Stephen Rahaim, Director, Datamuse LLC

• Avishkar Sabharwal, CEO, Satya Carbon

• Sharad Sharma, Climate Change Specialist, World Bank

• Ricardo Smith, External Advisor, Georgetown University

• Bishal Thapa, Chief Strategy and Impacts Officer, CLASP

• Shohei Yoshida, Director, Sumitomo

The steel industry accounts for 7–9% of global greenhouse gas emissions, making it central to mitigation efforts worldwide. While low-emissions steel technologies are advancing, progress remains uneven due to challenges related to financing, policy support, energy infrastructure, and evolving trade environments.

On the eve of World Environment Day, ORF America and WRI India hosted the virtual webinar, “Forging the Future of Low-Emissions Steel”, which brought together experts and stakeholders to discuss pathways for accelerating steel decarbonization across the value chain. In addition to a panel discussion, insights from two recent publications were presented:

• Greening Steel in a Fragmented World: Aligning Markets, Technology, and Finance Special Report by ORF America

• Navigating Industrial Decarbonization in India: Learnings from Different Approaches and Best Practices
  Issue Brief by WRI India 

The webinar explored pathways for low-emissions steel production, financing and infrastructure needs, the role of industrial policy and market creation, and the impact of evolving trade and regulatory environments on investment decisions and collaboration.

Speakers:

• Dr. Aruna Sharma, Former Secretary, Ministry of Steel, Government of India

• Ajay Kumar Rastogi, Chairman, Task Force on Sustainable Just Transition & Green Hydrogen, Government of Jharkhand

• Rachel Howard, Director, Asia Pacific, Mission Possible Partnership

• João Irineu Medeiros, Vice President Regulatory Affairs, Stellantis South America

• Moderator: Tirthankar Mandal, Associate Program Director, Energy, WRI India

• Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow & Head, Energy, ORF America

On May 29, ORF America hosted a private lunch discussion for members of the Indian diaspora in the DMV area. The event brought together community leaders, entrepreneurs, and policy professionals to discuss the growing influence of diaspora networks and think tanks in shaping U.S.-India relations.

On May 21, ORF America hosted a high-level lunch discussion with Ajay Bisaria, India's former High Commissioner to Pakistan, on the state of India-Pakistan relations one year after Operation Sindoor. The event was hosted in partnership with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

As a result, priorities such as food security, health resilience, energy access, and climate adaptation risk being increasingly marginalized. Consequently, the developing world, or the Global South, has to decide how to adapt to this changing world and develop bargaining power to secure investment and technology needed to meet their development objectives.

On May 14, ORF America convened the first meeting of the Global South Expert Working Group to discuss practical recommendations on country leverage and the Global South’s bargaining power. Participants examined how countries are using natural resources, market access, and geographic location as leverage, particularly in negotiations with the United States, China, the European Union, and other major powers.

The Global South Expert Working Group is an ORF America-led project on the Future of Global Development Cooperation that aims to advance a Global South-led framework for the coming decades. The group brings together leading experts and practitioners from Latin America and the Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and the Pacific Islands to explore how developing countries can navigate a rapidly changing development landscape.

Speakers:

• Opening Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America

• Moderator: Anit Mukherjee, Senior Fellow & Head, Energy, ORF America

On May 8, ORF America, in partnership with the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP), the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), and the Motwani Jadeja Foundation, organized a day of programming at SCSP’s 2026 AI+ Expo on U.S.-India AI and technology cooperation. Featuring speakers from both the U.S. and Indian governments, the private sector, Indian startups, and experts, the discussions aimed to engage the public and raise awareness on the scope of existing cooperation, as well as areas for future engagement.

Several key overarching takeaways emerged:

• Technology cooperation has been the consistent engine to pull the U.S.-India bilateral relationship forward, despite friction in other areas.

• In the age of AI, U.S.-India cooperation, along with like-minded partners, will be essential to ensure standards and AI governance reflect democratic norms and shared values, not authoritarian modalities.

• While the U.S. and Indian governments play a crucial facilitating role, investment decisions on AI are still driven by the private sector and they are moving forward. Investment in AI data centers in India by U.S. firms — including Microsoft, Google, and Amazon — have reached over $65 billion in keeping with the U.S. AI Action Plan to export leading AI hardware and services. Correspondingly, significant Indian private investments of over $20.5 billion announced during Select USA in May 2026 — particularly in pharmaceuticals, AI, and manufacturing — showcase the vibrancy of private sector engagement and investment.

• Ongoing conflicts have demonstrated the utility to the U.S. and Indian militaries of continued cooperation on applied AI and unmanned systems technology to provide new or enhanced capabilities across each domain in intelligence, foresight, planning, logistics, communications, and targeting.

In February 2026, ORF America and SCSP published the U.S.-India AI and Emerging Technology Compact. Developed with input from experts across government, industry, academia, and civil society, the report offers recommendations to coordinate future bilateral efforts to advance technology innovation and prosperity.

On April 30, ORF America hosted a Briefings & Beer on intensifying U.S.–China competition in Latin America. The conversation assessed how countries in Latin America are balancing opportunity and risk, and what a more effective U.S. approach might look like in the region.

Speakers:

• Benjamin Geban, Senior Fellow & Director, Stimson Center

• Henry Ziemer, Associate Fellow, CSIS Americas Program

• Martin Cassinelli, Assistant Director, Atlantic Council

• Moderator: Andre Nicola, Program Coordinator, ORF America

On April 22, ORF America convened an EU–Global South policy dialogue in Brussels on Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships (CTIPs) for the Energy Transition. The day-long conference brought together policymakers, industry leaders, and experts at a moment when trade policy is rapidly becoming central to how countries pursue clean energy, industrial growth, and economic competitiveness.

As clean technologies, from renewable power and hydrogen to batteries and critical minerals, become deeply embedded in global value chains, CTIPs are emerging as a new model that links trade, industrial cooperation, and investment in a more integrated way. Against this backdrop, the dialogue examined how CTIPs can strengthen supply chain resilience, unlock investment in clean industries, and enable more effective and mutually beneficial clean technology partnerships between Europe and Global South economies.

Among others, speakers included: 

• Keynote: Tomas Baert, Member of Cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission

• Special Remarks: Sifiso Mangali, First Secretary, Political, The Embassy of the Republic of South Africa to the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, and the Mission to the European Union

• Special Remarks on the Energy-Security Nexus: Dominik P. Jankowski, Deputy Secretary General for Policy and Outreach, NATO Parliamentary Assembly

• Special Remarks on Climate and Trade Governance: Aik Hoe Lim, Director, Trade and Environment Division, World Trade Organization

• Parliamentary Perspectives by Baroness Denise Kingsmill, Member, NATO Parliamentary Assembly and UK House of Lords; Hildegard Bentele, Member, European Parliament; and Udo Bullmann, Member, European Parliament

Key Takeaways

Why CTIPs?

• Shift from Extractive Models: CTIPs offer a pathway to move beyond traditional extractive approaches toward partnerships that prioritize local value creation. Discussions highlighted their potential to position the energy transition as an engine of industrialization in the Global South, supporting domestic processing, manufacturing, and job creation rather than continued reliance on raw material exports.

• Addressing Green Protectionism: Mechanisms such as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) were widely viewed by Global South stakeholders as potential constraints on competitiveness and market access. In this context, CTIPs can provide a structured platform for transparency, regulatory cooperation, and targeted support —through finance and capacity building — to help partner countries meet compliance requirements without undermining industrial development and growth.

• The Energy–Security Nexus: As energy becomes increasingly intertwined with national security and geopolitical stability, CTIPs can help diversify and strengthen clean energy supply chains. Participants discussed their role in reducing overdependence on concentrated sources, enhancing resilience, and fostering more balanced and secure partnerships across regions.

What are CTIPs?

• CTIPs as a New Policy Instrument: CTIPs are emerging as a flexible and targeted tool within the EU’s broader green industrial and cooperation strategy. Unlike traditional instruments such as free trade agreements or development assistance, CTIPs are designed to be faster, more focused, and capable of addressing specific bottlenecks across clean industrial value chains.

• Integration of Trade, Investment, and Industry: CTIPs go beyond conventional trade policy by linking trade to investment, industrial cooperation, regulatory alignment, and technology partnerships. This integrated approach reflects a broader shift toward aligning trade, climate, and industrial objectives in a more coordinated and strategic manner.

• Targeted and Sector-Focused Approach: Rather than broad, economy-wide agreements, CTIPs are structured to focus on specific sectors and value chains — such as clean energy technologies, critical minerals, or industrial decarbonization — allowing for more practical and tailored cooperation.

• Flexible and Time-Bound Implementation: CTIPs are designed to operate through flexible, modular arrangements that can deliver targeted outcomes within shorter political and industrial timelines, enabling faster implementation compared to traditional trade or cooperation frameworks.

How can CTIPs deliver for the Global South?

• Addressing Execution and Bankability Constraints: CTIPs can help tackle core implementation bottlenecks, such as permitting delays, grid readiness, and weak industrial ecosystems, by aligning policy support, technical assistance, and investment frameworks to make projects more bankable and investment-ready.

• Reducing the Cost of Capital: By leveraging blended finance, risk-sharing instruments, and coordinated public–private investment platforms, CTIPs can help lower the cost of capital in emerging economies and unlock large-scale clean energy deployment.

• Creating Demand Certainty: CTIPs can support the development of demand-side mechanisms, such as offtake agreements and green public procurement, that provide long-term market signals and reduce investment risk for clean technologies and products.

• Advancing Regulatory Alignment and Standards: By promoting alignment with international standards and supporting regulatory cooperation, CTIPs can reduce trade frictions, enhance market access, and enable Global South producers to integrate into global clean value chains.

• Enabling Green Comparative Advantage: CTIPs can facilitate the strategic development of industries based on clean energy availability and low-emissions production, helping partner countries build competitive advantage in emerging green sectors.

• Strengthening Technology Partnerships: CTIPs can go beyond commercial transactions to support more accessible and affordable technology transfer, fostering domestic manufacturing capacity and innovation ecosystems in partner economies.

• Building Skills and Institutional Capacity: By investing in workforce development, institutional strengthening, and shared frameworks, CTIPs can address foundational gaps that often constrain effective implementation and long-term scalability.

• Supporting Layered and Complementary Cooperation: CTIPs can function alongside multilateral and plurilateral frameworks, providing a flexible platform for targeted bilateral action while reinforcing broader international cooperation.

• Ensuring Inclusive and Accountable Implementation: Through transparency, democratic oversight, and engagement with civil society, industry, and labor groups, CTIPs can build political legitimacy and ensure that partnerships are both effective and sustainable.

Photography Credit: ©www.agencephotographique.com

ORF America, in partnership with the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET), convened a high-level dialogue on April 14 in Washington, D.C., along the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings. The conference brought together policymakers, development practitioners, private sector leaders, and researchers to examine how emerging technologies, shifting geopolitical dynamics, and evolving financial systems are reshaping development cooperation for the Global South.

The event took place at a moment of significant transition in the global development landscape. Traditional models centered on official development assistance (ODA) and donor recipient relationships are increasingly under strain, amid declining aid flows, rising geopolitical competition, and fragmentation in global trade and finance systems. In their place, new forms of cooperation are emerging, characterized by South-South partnerships, and a stronger emphasis on domestic resource mobilization, industrial policy, and technological adoption. Participants explored how these shifts can support sustainable growth, particularly through green industrialization and the integration of digital public infrastructure (DPI) and artificial intelligence (AI).

Key Takeaways:

• From Aid to Partnership: Reframing Development Cooperation. Speakers emphasized that the era of development driven primarily by North-South aid flows is giving way to a more complex ecosystem. Development finance is increasingly multipolar, with emerging economies playing a larger role in investment, trade, and knowledge exchange.

  A central takeaway was that development must be anchored in economic transformation and growth, rather than fragmented project-based interventions. This includes identifying and addressing binding constraints to growth, such as infrastructure gaps, high cost of capital, and limited institutional capacity, rather than relying solely on external assistance.

• Green Industrialization as an Economic Strategy. Discussions highlighted the need for Global South economies, particularly in Africa, to move beyond resource extraction toward value-added industrialization.

  Participants noted that many countries remain locked in commodity export models, leaving them vulnerable to external shocks. Critical minerals essential for the energy transition are often extracted in the Global South but processed elsewhere, limiting domestic value capture. Green industrialization must therefore be paired with energy access, infrastructure development, and industrial policy coordination.

  A recurring theme was the importance of regional cooperation to achieve scale, particularly in developing shared value chains for critical minerals and clean technologies. In this context, green industrialization and digital transformation are emerging as central pillars of future growth strategies in the Global South.

• Financing Constraints and the Cost of Capital. The high cost of financing emerged as one of the most significant barriers to development. Even where capital is available globally, uncertainty around policy frameworks, demand signals, and project viability reduces investment flows into emerging markets.

  Panelists pointed to the need to expand public-private partnerships and blended finance mechanisms, strengthen domestic capital markets, and improve project preparation and bankability. There was also broad recognition that global financial architecture must evolve to better reflect Global South realities, including through alternative approaches to risk assessment and credit rating systems. These challenges underscore that structural constraints, particularly in financing, infrastructure, and coordination, remain significant barriers to development.

• AI and Digital Transformation: Opportunity with Preconditions. Artificial intelligence and digital technologies were framed as critical enablers of development, but not substitutes for foundational investments.

  Speakers noted that AI has the potential to enhance efficiency in sectors such as energy and health systems, financial services, and public administration. However, its impact remains constrained by gaps in data infrastructure, electricity access, and connectivity. As a result, countries must continue to invest in power, transport, and digital infrastructure to fully benefit from AI.

  The discussion emphasized that digital transformation should be embedded within broader industrial and development strategies, rather than pursued in isolation.

• Rethinking Scale, Coordination, and Implementation. A major challenge identified throughout the discussions was the difficulty of moving from pilot projects to scalable, system-wide solutions.

  Participants stressed the need for coordinated regional approaches to industrialization and infrastructure development, alongside stronger alignment between policy frameworks, regulatory systems, and investment strategies. Greater integration of civil society, private sector actors, and multilateral institutions was also seen as essential for effective implementation.

  The importance of standards, regulatory frameworks, and inclusive governance structures was highlighted as critical to scaling innovation and ensuring equitable outcomes. Unlocking development potential will require deeper regional cooperation, institutional reform, and new approaches to scaling innovation.

Looking ahead, the conference underscored that the Global South is no longer a passive recipient in the development ecosystem, but an active participant shaping new frameworks for cooperation. As geopolitical and economic dynamics continue to evolve, stakeholders must focus on building resilient, scalable, and inclusive systems to support long-term development outcomes. The discussions will inform ongoing work by ORF America and its partners to advance actionable policy solutions on the green transition, digital transformation, and development finance.

Conference Agenda

Welcome Remarks

• Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America

• Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi, President and CEO, ACET

Fireside Chat: A New Development Cooperation Framework for the Global South: What does it mean for Africa and the World?

• H.E. Yasser Sobhi, Vice Minister of Finance for Fiscal Policies, Government of Egypt

• Moderator: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America

Panel Discussion: Location, Markets and Resources: Exercising Africa’s Leverage for Green Industrialization and Digital Transformation

• W. Gyude Moore, Distinguished Fellow, Energy for Growth Hub

• Pamla Gopaul, Unit Lead for Economic Analysis and Foresight, African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD)

• Mehul Pandya, Managing Director, CareEdge Ratings

• Raul Alfaro-Pelico, G20 Senior Advisor-African Union, AfDB Joint Secretariat Support Office, African Development Bank Group

• Moderator: Anit Mukherjee, Senior Fellow, ORF America

Special Remarks: The Global South’s Next Priority: Building The Missing Middle Beyond Capital Mobilization

• Udaibir Das, Distinguished Fellow, ORF America

Closing Remarks

• Rob Floyd, Director for Innovation and Digital Policy, ACET

The systemic vulnerabilities underscored by the rising tension in the Middle East are no longer theoretical but widely recognized. This edition of our Future of Energy Breakfasts focused on global oil and gas markets in the context of rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, with particular attention to the strategic role of the Strait of Hormuz. As one of the world’s most critical energy corridors, carrying nearly one-fifth of global oil and a similar share of LNG, the Strait of Hormuz is both a lifeline for energy markets and a point of acute vulnerability.

Key takeaways from the discussion included:

• The effective disruption of the Strait of Hormuz has had reverberating effects on global supply chains beyond the oil and gas industries. Participants underscored that the near-total halt of transit through the Strait has removed approximately 20 million barrels per day from global supply, constituting one of the largest energy disruptions in modern history. However, the impact is not confined to crude oil and LNG. Essential commodities such as helium, petrochemical feedstocks such as methanol and ethylene, aluminum, and pharmaceutical precursors are also experiencing supply chain disruptions that are already being felt. As a result, the blockage is reverberating across agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, and food systems. Even in the event of a reopening, elevated insurance costs, reduced risk tolerance, and damaged infrastructure are expected to delay a return to normal shipping flows, highlighting the fragility of globalized supply chains for these products, an issue the world can no longer ignore.

• East Asia’s energy system dependency on exports from the Gulf reveals sharp asymmetries, producing clear winners and highlighting acute vulnerabilities across the region. Participants noted that the disruption of the Strait of Hormuz disproportionately impacts East Asia, where dependence on Gulf energy flows is high. Around 84% of crude oil and 90% of LNG imports into Asia transit through the Strait, exposing the region to severe supply shocks. Within this context, China emerges as comparatively resilient. Years of strategic stockpiling have created substantial buffers, while diversified supply channels, including overland pipelines and continued access to discounted Iranian, Russian, and Venezuelan crude via shadow fleets enable greater resilience. China’s industrial system can also substitute feedstocks for petrochemicals, further cushioning the shock. In contrast, Japan and South Korea face acute structural vulnerabilities. Japan relies on the Middle East for roughly 94% of its oil imports. Japan currently holds 4 million tonnes of LNG reserves which is equivalent to only three weeks of consumption leaving limited room to absorb prolonged disruption. South Korea, with a similarly high dependence on Gulf supplies, is even more exposed due to its large domestic manufacturing base. The shutdowns of petrochemical facilities and risks to semiconductor production, particularly given constraints on inputs such as helium, underscore the cascading industrial impact. Both countries have already been forced to reactivate higher-emission coal capacity to stabilize supply.

• Energy security, affordability, and development are increasingly strained, particularly in emerging economies. The crisis is amplifying difficult trade-offs for governments, especially in developing countries. Rising fuel and commodity prices are placing pressure on public finances and subsidy regimes, with knock-on effects on poverty reduction and economic stability. Speakers highlighted how domestic policy choices, rather than global market structure alone, can drive fragmentation in how the crisis is experienced at the national level, even as oil markets remain globally integrated. For instance, Indonesia’s subsidized energy system is cushioning consumers from immediate price shocks but placing increasing strain on government budgets, while Singapore’s market-based pricing model, with no broad energy subsidies, is transmitting global price increases directly to consumers and industry. Countries such as India are forced to balance energy access with fiscal sustainability, while smaller economies face acute shortages in essential fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas. These pressures are even more pronounced in smaller and more vulnerable economies. Participants pointed to rising cooking gas prices in countries like Nepal and broader affordability challenges across South Asia, where energy costs directly affect food security, agricultural inputs, and basic living standards. These pressures are compounding existing inflationary dynamics, making poverty alleviation and middle-class expansion significantly more difficult.

• Geopolitical leverage over critical chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz is reshaping energy security and global trade dynamics. During the recent crisis, the Strait effectively became a tool of strategic coercion, as Iran demonstrated its ability to exert significant pressure on the global economy through controlled disruptions and selective access. Participants highlighted the emergence of new mechanisms, including bilateral safe-passage arrangements for limited volumes of oil tankers, the use of vetted or coordinated transits, and Iran’s push for maritime tolling — with reported fees reaching up to $2 million per vessel in some cases. These developments signal a potential erosion of long-standing norms on freedom of navigation, raising serious implications for international maritime law and naval security. Existing infrastructure, such as Saudi Arabia’s East-West Crude Oil Pipeline, provides a partial alternative to reduce dependency on the Strait. However, such bypass routes remain limited in scope and cannot fully offset the massive volumes of oil and LNG traditionally transported by tankers through Hormuz.

• The crisis is driving shifts in energy systems, with mixed implications for the energy transition. Participants highlighted a growing divergence between short-term energy security imperatives and long-term decarbonization goals. On one hand, alongside renewed investment in domestic renewable capacity, the disruption is catalyzing what participants described as a “nuclear renaissance,” particularly in Northeast Asia. On the other hand, coal is experiencing a near-term resurgence as countries prioritize reliability and affordability over emissions targets. Even LNG, previously positioned as a transition fuel, has seen its role undermined by supply insecurity and infrastructure risks, particularly in Qatar.

Looking ahead, the crisis may leave a lasting imprint on how energy systems are designed and governed. Investment in alternative supply routes, domestic production, and storage capacity is likely to accelerate, alongside increased scrutiny of critical chokepoints worldwide. At the same time, the potential normalization of economic coercion, through tolling, disruption, or resource control, raises concerns about precedent and the stability of global trade frameworks. While energy markets themselves remain structurally global, national policies, subsidies, and geopolitical alignments are introducing new layers of complexity. Participants also underscored the need to move beyond reactive responses toward more resilient energy systems, built on diversification, flexibility, and reduced exposure to single points of failure.

Speakers:

• Opening Remarks and Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America

• Peter R. Lavoy, Senior Director, International Government Relations, ExxonMobil

• Matt Schubert, Managing Director, FGS Global

• Adam Sieminski, Senior Advisor to the Board of Trustees, King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) 

• Closing Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America 

Participants

• Raul Alfaro-Pelico, Lancaster University

• Telmen Altanshagai, NXT Conclave

• Caroline Arkalji, ORF America

• Travis Brubaker, E3G

• Amb. Robert Cekuta, American University

• Kyle Disselkoen, Bloomberg NEF

• Damian Doyle, Embassy of Australia

• Andrew Fishbein, Climeworks

• Gilberto Garcia-Vazquez, NZIPL

• Akshobh Giridharadas, US-India Strategic Partnership Forum

• Anvesh Jain, Georgetown University Law Center

• Hamna Khan, U.S. Department of Energy

• Parag Nathaney, Exelon

• Sarah Otte, Deloitte

• Satvik Pendyala, American Enterprise Institute

• Medha Prasanna, ORF America

• Tejasvi Raghuveer, Energy Aspects

• Sarah Salah, ORF America

• Mary Sagatelova, Third Way

• Sara Schonhardt, E&E News

• Abhik Sengupta, Confederation of Indian Industry

• Nayan Seth, Independent Consultant

• Siddharth Sharma, McLarty Associates

• Scott Shaw, The Cohen Group

• Sarang Shidore, Quincy Institute

• Elena Thomas-Kerr, US Department of Energy

• Naoki Tsuji, Japan Bank for International Cooperation

• Marshall Williams, NewFront 

On March 27, ORF America hosted staffers from the India Desk and Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State to discuss U.S.-India cooperation.

On February 25, ORF America convened policymakers, industry leaders, investors, analysts, and civil society representatives for a roundtable on the future of low-carbon steel in Seoul, Republic of Korea. The small-group convening included participants from 7 countries and 18 organizations, spanning government, heavy industry, finance, multilateral institutions, and research bodies. Discussions focused on the practical barriers and strategic opportunities shaping steel’s transition, ranging from technology readiness and infrastructure constraints to demand creation, trade alignment, standards development, and the role of finance in scaling early-stage projects. Participants examined how industrial policy, energy systems, and global markets must move in coordination to accelerate credible pathways toward lower-emissions steel production.

The day-long event unfolded across four sessions: Market Reality Checks: Policies, Standards, and Shared Bottlenecks; Technology Readiness and Pathways – What Can Scale, and When?; Making Green Steel Bankable: Finance, Risks, and the Green Premium; and From Fragmentation to Coordination: Enabling Infrastructure, Trusted Supply Chains, and Actionable Recommendations. Across these discussions, five central recommendations emerged:

1. Reframe the Challenge: Decarbonize Ironmaking and Sequence Pathways Strategically
   A key insight is that most emissions in steel production come from ironmaking, not the final steelmaking stage. The debate should therefore focus on how to decarbonize iron production first. Rather than treating technologies as competing silver bullets, governments and firms need practical, country-specific transition roadmaps that compare options across cost, emissions reduction potential, scalability, and infrastructure readiness. This allows decision-makers to prioritize the most cost-effective abatement measures, identify where public support is truly needed, and sequence investments rationally over time. Such an approach recognizes geographic realities. Scrap availability, hydrogen infrastructure, carbon storage capacity, and energy costs differ widely across regions. Effective policy must reflect these differences, not impose uniform solutions.

2. Scale Demand Through Green Public Procurement
   Participants emphasized that demand must lead supply, but demand must also be coordinated. Expanding green public procurement across infrastructure, transport, and construction can create predictable, bankable markets for lower-emissions steel. However, unilateral national action will not shift global markets at scale. Collective adoption of procurement standards, across governments, provinces, and major buyers, was identified as critical. Governments and leading offtakers must act together, sending credible multi-year signals that reduce risk and unlock investment, much as structured procurement frameworks did for renewable energy and LNG markets.

3. Make Offtakers and Governments Co-Architects of Market Creation
   The primary bottleneck is no longer technological — it is commercial. Steel producers face high capital costs and uncertain returns if the green premium is not supported by predictable demand. Without bankable buyers, investment decisions stall. The solution is to work backwards from the buyer. What makes a green steel contract viable — regulatory compliance, brand value, supply security, or decarbonization commitments? These drivers must translate into enforceable, long-term offtake agreements supported by credible certification, transparent emissions accounting, and, where needed, price-stabilization tools such as contracts for difference or price floors. Governments must pair standards with incentives and risk-sharing mechanisms, while major industrial buyers integrate low-emission steel into mainstream procurement strategies. Market creation cannot be assumed — it must be intentionally designed and scaled.

4. Align Stakeholder Signals to Reduce Fragmentation
   Fragmentation across standards, infrastructure planning, regulatory systems, and financing frameworks remains a structural barrier. Investors seek policy clarity; producers seek demand certainty; governments seek emissions reductions without unsustainable fiscal exposure. When these signals are misaligned, projects stall. Participants emphasized the need for interoperable monitoring, reporting, and verification systems, credible and harmonized green certification, coordinated procurement standards, and blended finance tools that reduce risk across the value chain. Digital infrastructure and AI can further accelerate alignment by improving transparency, operational optimization, and energy management, thereby strengthening confidence among stakeholders. Reducing administrative and bureaucratic bottlenecks, both domestically and across bilateral partnerships, is equally critical to improving project bankability and moving from intent to execution.

5. Lead with Ambition and Prepare for an Inflection Point
   Steel decarbonization is no longer solely a climate issue — it is a question of competitiveness, energy security, and long-term industrial positioning. Elevating it to that level requires political clarity and policy ambition strong enough to justify early and coordinated intervention. At the same time, the transition must be managed deliberately to avoid disorder. Steel remains a nation-building sector, deeply linked to coal-dependent regions and established industrial workforces. Workforce reskilling, labor transition planning, and alignment with just transition principles must be embedded within decarbonization strategies rather than treated as afterthoughts. While green steel was described as inevitable, history shows that industrial transitions can accelerate abruptly once economic and policy tipping points are reached. Proactive coordination and sustained executive-level commitment will determine whether countries emerge as leaders in the next industrial cycle — or struggle as displaced incumbents.

Welcome Remarks and Keynote Speakers:

• Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America

• Amb. Gourangalal Das, Ambassador of India to the Republic of Korea, Embassy of India, Seoul, Republic of Korea

• Amb. Hyoeun Jenny Kim, CEO, Global Industry Hub

Participants

• Caroline Arkalji, Research Assistant, ORF America

• Sanjana Arya, First Secretary (Commerce & Investment), Embassy of India, Seoul, Republic of Korea

• Anurag Bajpai, Director and Co-founder, GreenTree Global

• Parul Bakshi, Non-Resident Fellow – Climate and Energy, ORF Middle East

• Hayli Chiu, Analyst, Stewardship, Asia Investor Group on Climate Change

• Eun Ko Rachel, Chief Strategy Officer and Director of the Industrial Decarbonization Program, NEXT Group

• Lauren Huleatt, Head of Impact, Transition Asia

• Eileen Hur, Technical Officer, Global Green Growth Institute

• Samuel Hwang, Counsellor (Industry, Science and Resources), Australian Embassy in Seoul

• Juna Hwang, Program Officer, Solutions for Our Climate

• Soyi Hyun, Commercial Lead for Korea, BloombergNEF

• Chang Sun Jang, Deputy Director, Global Green Growth Institute

• Huntae Kim, Vice President, ESG Bureau, POSCO Holdings

• Gyoorie Kim, Diplomacy Lead, Solutions for Our Climate

• Jacob Kim, Account Manager, BloombergNEF

• Jieun Kim, Commercial Division, Embassy of India, Seoul, Republic of Korea

• James Kneebone, PhD Researcher, ETH Zürich

• Heather Lee, Steel Team Lead, Solutions for Our Climate

• Piljin Moon, Carbon Neutral Strategy Team Lead, POSCO Holdings

• Medha Prasanna, Program Coordinator, ORF America

• Tom Quinn, Managing Director, Springmount Advisory

• Umer Sadiq, Associate, BloombergNEF

• Anna Song, Korea Engagement Lead, Mission Possible Partnership

• Shigeaki Tanaka, Executive Officer, Environmental Planning and Green Transformation, Nippon Steel

• Wonho Yeon, Head of Economic Security Group, Hyundai Motors Group

• Mielle Yoo, Korea Program Lead, Mission Possible Partnership

• Sejong Youn, Director, Plan 1.5

On February 20, ORF America convened a roundtable in collaboration with the Brazilian Embassy in Washington, DC to launch and present the findings of a special report outlining key action priorities and concrete pathways for IBSA+Indonesia coordination on green transitions. The discussion was part of the IBSA+ Indonesia Green Transitions Initiative, an effort launched in March 2025 to strengthen collaboration among India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA), and Indonesia on clean energy transitions. Building on the momentum of consecutive IBSA+Indonesia G20 presidencies, this initiative seeks to embed Global South priorities in the global energy transition agenda and advance practical cooperation across climate finance, technology development, and industrial competitiveness.

The discussion brought together policymakers, industry leaders, and experts to explore how four large democracies, representing a combined GDP of nearly $8 trillion and approximately 25% of global output, can move from parallel national strategies to coordinated action. Participants emphasized that South–South cooperation is not optional but strategic, particularly as electricity demand across these economies is projected to increase by up to 55% over the next decade. Energy transition was framed not as a standalone climate track, but as a central driver of modernization, competitiveness, energy security, and industrial transformation.

The roundtable built on earlier IBSA+Indonesia dialogues on technology, supply chains, and skills gaps, while addressing key structural challenges — including high capital costs, fragmented diplomacy, supply chain vulnerabilities, and the risk of remaining raw-material exporters while importing higher-value clean technologies. Participants underscored the importance of diplomatic harmonization, financial architecture reform, coordinated trade instruments, and innovation partnerships to ensure that the Global South emerges as a co-architect of the global energy future. Some of the key highlights from the discussion are:

Climate and energy policy cannot be decoupled from trade architecture. Several speakers underscored that rules governing tariffs, subsidies, carbon standards, and local content are increasingly shaping clean energy competitiveness. Brazil’s COP30 ambition to link climate leadership with trade and green industrial policy was highlighted as a model of this integration. There was broad agreement that IBSA+Indonesia should explore preferential clean tech trading arrangements among the four countries, while also engaging proactively in global trade discussions to ensure that emerging frameworks support industrial upgrading in the Global South rather than constrain it. There was strong agreement that energy transition diplomacy must extend beyond climate negotiations into trade and economic institutions such as the WTO. 

Public procurement as one of the most powerful yet underleveraged tools for accelerating clean industrialization. Given that public procurement can represent 13–20% of GDP in some member countries, participants noted its potential to create early demand for green steel, green concrete, battery storage, and other clean technologies. The discussion underscored that coordinated procurement standards across IBSA+Indonesia could send strong market signals, de-risk private investment, and anchor domestic manufacturing ecosystems.

Disproportionately high cost of capital across emerging economies, often estimated to be up to three times higher than in advanced markets. Participants emphasized that inflated country risk premiums and fragmented financial architecture trap projects in a cycle of delayed deployment and higher hurdle rates. Several speakers noted that finance debates often occur in isolation from implementation realities, such as grid expansion, permitting processes, and storage deployment. There was consensus that aggregated project pipelines, bundled MSME initiatives, and innovative instruments — including domestic currency financing mechanisms and the strategic use of carbon pricing revenues — could help reprice perceived risk and unlock scalable investment.

Fragmented data standards and inconsistent reporting undermine investor confidence and complicate cross-border coordination. Reliable, interoperable energy data, alongside harmonized certification and carbon accounting frameworks, was seen as essential for accurate risk assessment, benchmarking, and market access. Speakers underscored that without aligned green taxonomies and common standards for hydrogen, batteries, clean steel, and responsibly sourced critical minerals, even competitive manufacturers struggle to scale regionally. Greater transparency and coordinated standards would lower transaction costs, strengthen credibility, and position IBSA+Indonesia as a trusted bloc in global clean energy markets.

Transition should be framed around building clean industries rather than solely around phasing out fossil fuels. Speakers emphasized that renewable scale-up, geothermal expansion, green hydrogen, and resilient grids represent engines of economic modernization. India’s renewable expansion, Indonesia’s geothermal leadership, South Africa’s REIPPP mobilization, and Brazil’s integration of climate with trade policy were cited as evidence that clean energy strengthens energy security, reduces import dependence, and enhances long-term competitiveness. The consensus was clear: a development-first, industry-building approach offers a more affirmative and politically durable pathway for the Global South.

Speakers

• Welcome Remarks: Fernando Perdigão, Counselor, Energy, Environment, and Critical Minerals, Embassy of Brazil in Washington, D.C.

• Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America

• Ashutosh Jindal, Embassy of India, Washington D.C.

• Laird Treiber, Corporate Council on Africa

• Maiara Folly, Plataforma CIPÓ

• Kate Logan, Asia Society

• Medha Prasanna, Program Coordinator and Junior Fellow, ORF America

• Caroline Arkalji, Research Assistant, ORF America

• Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America 

Participants

• Edgar Aguilar, Energy Futures Initiative Foundation

• Raul Alfaro-Pelico, Lancaster University

• Tatiana Bruce da Silva, Energy Futures Initiative Foundation

• Kaysie Brown, Third Generation Environmentalism (E3G)

• Christina Cilento, Resources for the Future

• Kalina Gibson, Center for American Progress

• Arya Harsono, World Resources Institute

• Melissa J. Kopolow, Albright Stonebridge Group

• Anamika Mishra, Embassy of India, Washington D.C.

• Amin Mohseni, American University

• Anit Mukherjee, ORF America

• Sarah Salah, ORF America

• Abhinav Subramaniam, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

• Fabio Veras Soares, Institute for Applied Economic Research

• Courtney Weatherby, Stimson Center

On February 14, ORF America, in partnership with the Observer Research Foundation and the Ministry of External Affairs of India, hosted a lunch on the sidelines of the 62nd Munich Security Conference. The discussion, “Stability Under Stress: The New Demands of Statecraft”, focused on how capable powers align strategy, capital, and responsibility to sustain resilience, manage shocks, and shape a cooperative global future.

Speakers:

• H.E. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, India

• H.E. Anwar Bin Mohammed Gargash, Diplomatic Advisor to His Highness the President of the UAE, United Arab Emirates

• H.E. Carl Bildt, Former Prime Minister of Sweden; Member of the Advisory Council, Munich Security Conference, Berlin; Member of the Global Advisory Board, Observer Research Foundation

• H.E. S. Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, India

• Dr. Meghan O'Sullivan, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Kirkpatrick Professor of the Practice of International Affairs, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge

• Moderator: Dr. Samir Saran, President, Observer Research Foundation, India

The Future of Energy Breakfasts series brings together senior leaders from government, industry, and technology for candid, closed-door discussions on the forces reshaping the global energy landscape. This edition focused on nuclear fusion, examining its technological readiness, policy, and regulatory environment, and the role of public–private collaboration in advancing fusion from long-term research to early commercialization.

Key takeaways included:

• From laboratory science to early pilots and commercialization, fusion is entering a pivotal phase. Participants noted that nuclear fusion has moved beyond purely experimental research and is now navigating the complex transition toward commercial viability. While significant scientific milestones have been achieved, the pathway to grid-connected systems requires clarity around engineering scalability, cost reduction, and operational reliability. Discussion outlined the importance of achieving sustained net energy gain at the systems level, reducing recirculating power requirements, and designing reactors that can operate efficiently in extreme physical environments. Although several companies anticipate proof-of-concept demonstrations within this decade, participants stressed that commercial readiness will ultimately depend as much on systems integration and cost competitiveness as on plasma physics breakthroughs.

• Public–private collaboration has become the central driver of progress in fusion development. The public sector has increasingly shifted from basic scientific exploration toward enabling commercialization through milestone-based partnerships and structured funding models. Participants highlighted the growing integration of artificial intelligence and high-performance computing into plasma modeling, control systems, materials research, and reactor design optimization. These technological accelerators are compressing development timelines and improving predictability. At the same time, collaboration between national laboratories, startups, utilities, and regulators is helping to align scientific ambition with market realities. The consensus view was that sustained coordination across institutions will determine whether fusion transitions from demonstration to deployment.

• Capital formation is reshaping fusion from a research domain into an emerging industrial sector. Venture capital and private investment have expanded significantly in recent years, supported by industry organizations representing a growing ecosystem of companies and affiliates. Participants observed that investor interest is not solely tied to long-term electricity generation but also to near-term commercial applications emerging from fusion research. High-temperature superconducting magnets, medical isotope production, advanced materials, and power management technologies are emerging as adjacent commercial applications that could provide parallel revenue pathways and strengthen the sector’s financial resilience over time. Nonetheless, participants emphasized that long-term capital confidence will depend on credible timelines, regulatory clarity, risk-sharing, and demonstrable progress toward reducing levelized cost projections.

• Supply-chain resilience and geopolitical realities present structural challenges for the fusion ecosystem. Fusion systems rely on highly specialized components, including advanced semiconductors, rare earth materials, superconducting materials, and high-performance alloys. Participants noted that concentration in certain segments of global supply chains introduces vulnerabilities, particularly given current geopolitical tensions. While multinational collaboration continues through large-scale initiatives and research platforms, broader strategic competition complicates deeper technological exchange among major powers. Strengthening domestic manufacturing capabilities, diversifying trusted supply chains, and fostering international partnerships were identified as necessary steps to mitigate long-term risk for nuclear fusion.

• Safety frameworks and public transparency will shape the long-term legitimacy of fusion energy. Fusion reactors operate under extreme conditions characterized by high-energy neutrons, intense heat flux, and powerful magnetic fields. Participants underscored the importance of regulatory clarity that both safeguards public welfare and provides certainty for developers. Building public trust will require proactive communication about how materials are managed throughout the lifecycle, and how regulatory oversight evolves alongside technological progress. Transparent governance, rather than reactive reassurance, was viewed as essential to maintaining social license.

• Finally, fusion is emerging not only as an energy innovation but as a strategic technology with implications for national competitiveness and long-term energy security. Participants emphasized that the coming decade will be decisive. Continued public–private R&D collaboration, scalable financing mechanisms, resilient supply chains, and international cooperation will determine whether fusion remains a scientific milestone or becomes operational infrastructure. The trajectory of fusion development will reflect not only advances in physics, but also the strength of policy alignment, industrial strategy, and institutional coordination.

Speakers

• Welcome Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America 

• Matthew Lanctot, Acting Director, Research Division - Fusion Energy Sciences,
  U.S. Department of Energy

• Andrew Holland, CEO, Fusion Industry Association

• Dhananjay Ravikumar, Director, Thermofluids Engineering, Type One Energy

• Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America

Participants

• Edgar Aguilar, Energy Futures Initiative Foundation

• Alan Ahn, Third Way

• Ryan Alimento, The Breakthrough Institute

• Caroline Arkalji, ORF America

• Donna Attanasio, GW Alliance for a Sustainable Future

• Isaac Edwards, Fusion Industry Association

• Jennifer Fioretti, Arlington County Government

• Stephen Greene, Nuclear Innovation Alliance

• Jonathan Lane, Third Way

• Satvik Pendyala, American Enterprise Institute

• Sarah Salah, ORF America

• Nayan Seth, Independent Consultant

• Naoki  Tsuji, Japan Bank for International Cooperation

On February 2, ORF America organized a private roundtable on India’s Union Budget for the fiscal year 2026-27. It was attended by high-level policymakers, public policy experts, and senior representatives of multilateral banks and industry associations who discussed the implications of the budget for the Indian economy in 2026 and beyond.

The Union Budget came at a critical juncture for India's economy. Over the past year, India’s economy weathered the tariff shock, undertook significant reforms in Goods and Services Tax (GST), labor laws and foreign direct investment (FDI), and restructured social welfare schemes. Budget 2026 therefore provided a glimpse of India's economic resilience over the past year and prospects for future growth and macro-fiscal stability against a backdrop of a challenging external environment.

The discussions centered around three key themes:

• Maintaining growth and fiscal discipline: Despite a challenging global environment and previous tariff shocks, the Indian economy has shown resilience with robust growth, moderate inflation, and a manageable current account deficit. The 2026 Budget maintains a commitment to fiscal consolidation, targeting a reduced fiscal deficit of 4.3% and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 54% while increasing public investment by approximately 9%.

• Addressing macro-fiscal challenges: Participants identified several hurdles, including a stagnant tax-to-GDP ratio and sluggish private investment. Furthermore, conservative revenue projections due to GST rationalization and forex risks stemming from rupee depreciation continue to dampen investor sentiment. While the Budget continues the trend of simplifying direct tax compliance and increased allocation for capital expenditure, these would have to translate into higher revenues and increased investment by the private sector to sustain the growth momentum.

• Focusing on job creation and workforce development: A primary concern is the urgent need to create 14 million jobs annually for the next decade, especially as artificial intelligence reshapes the labor market. Addressing this requires consistent investment in skills and workforce development, and the private sector to take a leading role to execute budget initiatives in both labor-intensive and advanced technology sectors. Ultimately, the budget was seen as a step in the right direction, balancing fiscal prudence with strategic "big bets" to attract investment in critical sectors. Success will depend on federal and state governments working together to maintain regulatory consistency and a stable macro-fiscal framework.

• Speakers

• Harald Finger, Assistant Director, International Monetary Fund

• Ashutosh Jindal, Minister (Economic), Embassy of India, Washington DC

• Richard Rossow, Senior Adviser and Chair on India and Emerging Asia Economics, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

• Siddharth Sharma, Lead Economist, World Bank

• Moderator: Anit Mukherjee, Senior Fellow, ORF America

On January 15, Observer Research Foundation America (ORF America), along with the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP) and the Embassy of India, Washington DC co-organized a discussion at the U.S. Senate on U.S.-India strategic cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI) and the forthcoming AI Impact Summit in India. 

Keynote Remarks 

• Namgya C. Khampa, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of India, Washington DC

Expert Panel Discussion on U.S.-India AI Cooperation

• Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America (moderator)

• Chantal Lakatos, Managing Director for Global Government Affairs, Lam Research

• Jeffrey D. Bean, Program Manager, Technology Policy, ORF America

• Trisha Ray, Associate Director and Resident Fellow, GeoTech Center, Atlantic Council

• Joe Wang, Vice President for Global Affairs, Special Competitive Studies Project 

Discussants stressed India's bet on the promise of AI for the next generation of disruptive technologies, its deployment of digital public infrastructure at population scale, India's growing AI market (expected to rise to $130 billion), it being the second-largest hub of generative AI startups, and it being home to a fast-growing AI talent pool. India's focus is on how to use AI to empower people through balancing both innovation and responsible use and competition and safety. 

The Summit itself revolves around three themes (People, Planet, and Progress), and involves seven working groups negotiating a Summit statement. This will be the first Summit of its kind in the Global South, a part of the world that has historically been marginalized in standard setting and global AI policy. It intends to shift the focus beyond only AI safety to impact and use cases. 

Discussants also focused on bilateral cooperation, including U.S.-India cooperation in combating the weaponization of supply chains and building resilience. India is already the second largest user base for most American AI applications. To this end, companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Open AI, and Google are all investing further in data centers and markets in India, despite ongoing trade frictions between the United States and India. 

To advance cooperation further, a recent dialogue organized by SCSP and ORF America led to recommendations for further cooperation on AI applications, infrastructure, talent, and policies. These included steps to strengthen cybersecurity, leverage DPI, and improve defense applications; cooperation on semiconductors, mid-life GPUs, and capital deployment for data centers and connectivity; coordination on talent certification and apprenticeships; and alignment on standards, export controls, and intellectual property. 

This event was an official pre-summit event for the India AI Impact Summit.

On January 12, ORF America, in collaboration with the National Solar Energy Federation of India and BlueKraft Digital Foundation, hosted the New Delhi launch of Energy for Billions: India’s Turnaround and the World’s Future at the India International Centre.

Authored by Senior Fellow Piyush Verma, the book traces India’s extraordinary journey from widespread energy poverty to emerging global leadership in clean energy and climate governance. Blending personal narrative with policy insight, Energy for Billions offers a deeply human account of how energy access, institutional reform, and technological scale-up have reshaped India’s development trajectory — while also looking ahead to the country’s 2047 energy independence and 2070 net-zero goals, and the lessons this journey offers for the Global South and the world.

Published by BlueKraft Digital Foundation under the Viksit Bharat Fellowship, Energy for Billions features a foreword by Shri Piyush Goyal, Hon’ble Minister of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, and has been widely endorsed by leaders in India and globally.

The launch discussion reflected on India’s clean energy transformation over the past decade, the governance and institutional choices that enabled scale, and the lessons India’s experience offers to other developing economies navigating energy transitions amid growth, equity, and climate constraints.

Opening remarks featured:

• Subrahmanyam Pulipaka, CEO, National Solar Energy Federation of India

• Shrutkeerti Khurana, Senior Vice President and Head – Publications & Knowledge Center, BlueKraft Digital Foundation

and a panel discussion with:

• Deepak Gupta, IAS (Retd.), Director General, National Solar Energy Federation of India; Former Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy; Former Chairman, Union Public Service Commission  

• Ajay Mathur, Professor of Practice, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi; Former Director General, Bureau of Energy Efficiency; Former Director General, International Solar Alliance

• Arvinn Gadgil, Deputy Ambassador, Royal Norwegian Embassy, New Delhi

• Anita George, Chief Executive Officer, ProsperETE; Former Senior Director – Energy, World Bank

On December 16, the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and ORF America hosted its 2025 Annual Dinner with partners, friends, and leaders from the public and private sectors in Menlo Park, California.

Every year, the ORF America Annual Dinner brings together high-profile leaders from the public and private sector to discuss contemporary global governance issues impacting the current world order. The 2025 edition reflected on the past year’s pivotal moments as global leaders tackled shifting geopolitics, eroding old orders, and emerging power centers, and explored what lies ahead in 2026.

Speakers:

• Stephen Harper, Former Prime Minister Canada 

• Tadashi Maeda, Chairman of the Board, Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)

• Marise Payne, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Australia

• Marietje Schaake, International Policy Director, Stanford University

• Moderator: Samir Saran, President, ORF

On December 16, Carnegie India, the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), and ORF America convened a closed-door roundtable with international policymakers, technology leaders, and experts to shape India's approach to the February 2026 AI Impact Summit. 

The discussion centered on eight priority themes for the Summit: use cases, scale, Global South inclusion, collaboration, open-source sustainability, model assurance, AI sovereignty, and data governance. Participants emphasized that India should position the Summit with clear focus rather than attempting to address all AI issues comprehensively. Suggested focal areas included capacity building, access to computing infrastructure, use case deployment in healthcare and education, and democratizing AI safety tools.

Critical tensions emerged around several issues. While open-source models are valued, participants expressed concern about a widening performance gap with proprietary models that could leave Global South countries technologically disadvantaged. Data governance sparked debate between those advocating for monetization frameworks and others warning that overly restrictive approaches create 'local islands' cutting countries off AI benefits. The question of model assurance, guaranteeing continued access to APIs and models despite geopolitical shifts, surfaced as a practical sovereignty concern.

Infrastructure emerged as a central theme, with calls to prioritize data centers over semiconductor manufacturing in the near term, and to explore edge AI as a democratization pathway for resource-constrained deployments. Participants stressed the need for increased talent development through university investments, while entrepreneurs emphasized reducing bureaucratic barriers and increasing foreign capital access. The consensus pointed toward building on India's existing Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) stack, focusing on agentic systems, and demonstrating leadership through specific, implementable use cases, particularly in critical infrastructure protection, child safety, healthcare, and education, rather than pursuing abstract governance frameworks or premature regulation.

Key Takeaways 

• Narrow the focus to demonstrate leadership: The Summit must choose specific priorities rather than trying to cover everything. This can be done by building on India’s DPI strengths, with a focus on agentic systems and the selection of high-impact sectors such as healthcare, education, and critical infrastructure protection. Prioritizing concrete use cases can also demonstrate “AI for good” and help generate public buy-in.

• Invest in talent infrastructure, not just hardware: Prioritize data centers over semiconductors in the near term, while also recognizing that infrastructure extends beyond hardware. Invest heavily in universities and focus on reducing bureaucratic barriers and foreign investment constraints that force startups offshore. Focus on edge AI as a democratization strategy for resource-constrained environments rather than competing directly on frontier models.

• Address the open source dilemma and model assurance: The growing performance gap between open source and proprietary models risks leaving the Global South to build on potentially weaker models. Countries need concrete model assurances — guarantees that APIs and models remain accessible despite geopolitical shifts. Localizing model weights and expanding edge computing can provide practical pathways to sovereignty.

Speakers:

• Rudra Chaudhuri, Director, Carnegie India

• Rahul Matthan, Partner, Trilegal

• Amlan Mohanty, Fellow, Carnegie India

• Samir Saran, President, ORF

The Future of Energy Breakfasts series brings together senior leaders from government, industry, and technology for candid, closed-door discussions on the forces reshaping the global energy landscape. This edition examined the future of heavy industry, spotlighting innovation, competitiveness, and resilience — and how emerging technologies and new partnerships can transform the world’s most essential sectors.

The discussion examined the key drivers of global heavy-industry competitiveness, including policy, technology, markets, and emerging risks. 

• On the policy front, participants noted that the biggest impediment to long-term industrial transformation is policy instability, especially given that heavy-industry investments operate on longer horizons. While instruments such as Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), carbon contracts for difference (CCfDs), and a range of other carbon pricing schemes worldwide offer important signals, they remain insufficient on their own to catalyze investment at the scale required. Participants also underscored the challenges of establishing reliable product standards and carbon-accounting mechanisms. Concerns around double counting, methodological inconsistency, and poor international alignment continue to create uncertainty for investors and industry alike.

• Market dynamics featured prominently in the discussion, underscoring competitiveness as a central concern for heavy industry. Participants noted that success ultimately depends on either achieving cost-competitive production or securing markets willing to absorb higher prices for low-carbon materials. Demand-side differentiation is already emerging: in some sectors, such as textiles, consumers are increasingly willing to pay a premium for cleaner products. On the supply side, participants highlighted new regional investment opportunities, particularly in areas with strong renewable energy resources and favorable production costs. These regions are well-positioned to become green-commodity hubs for steel, ammonia, and other industrial products. Competitive industrial decarbonization is no longer theoretical. Several developing economies now have operational projects in sectors like steel and ammonia, backed by secured offtake agreements that demonstrate real commercial traction. In other markets, participants pointed to the rising importance of voluntary credit mechanisms, where low-carbon producers generate and sell credits to corporate buyers. Early examples include green fertilizer and certain food and beverage supply chains, where companies are eager to demonstrate progress toward sustainability commitments.

• Technological progress in industrial decarbonization has been steady but uneven, often advancing through cycles of experimentation across biomass use, CCUS, and green hydrogen. Participants emphasized that no single technology will deliver the transition; instead, a portfolio of solutions tailored to regional resource endowments is essential. Sectorally, green procurement offtake agreements are accelerating, particularly in Europe for green steel, low-carbon ammonia, and emerging bioplastics. These agreements are helping de-risk early projects and signal growing market confidence. Participants also highlighted that energy efficiency remains one of the most undervalued opportunities. New efficiency and low-carbon production technologies, including early electrochemical cement processes that can dramatically reduce emissions, offer major cost-effective mitigation potential but are still far from widespread adoption. In the aluminium sector, participants noted that production is increasingly integrating wind and solar power, supported by battery storage. However, the sector remains grid-inflexible, highlighting the need for improved grid integration technologies and demand-response mechanisms. Across heavy industry, high-efficiency motors and motor-driven systems — which account for a substantial share of industrial electricity use — represent a major, immediate area for improvement. Digitalization is another critical enabler that can reduce energy losses, stabilize operations, and unlock system-wide efficiency gains across steel, cement, aluminium and other production.

• In discussing risks to green industrialization, participants highlighted the strong link between geopolitical uncertainty and rising financing costs. Investors remain cautious about committing capital to long-horizon industrial projects, particularly those involving emerging decarbonization technologies. Concerns about carbon leakage also persist. Participants noted that mechanisms such as CBAM help at the margin but do not fully address the competitiveness challenges faced by producers in many markets. Another emerging pressure point is the competition for clean energy and infrastructure capacity. The rapid expansion of energy-intensive sectors, especially data centers, is straining grids in several regions and in some cases displacing planned green industrial projects. This dynamic underscores the need for integrated planning across sectors that increasingly rely on the same limited energy and infrastructure resources.

Overall, the discussion emphasized that transforming heavy industry will require coordinated global policy, innovative and patient financing, robust risk-mitigation tools, and market mechanisms that support long-term investment and competitiveness. Participants also stressed that demand creation is essential. Without reliable markets for low-carbon materials, even well-designed technologies and financing structures will struggle to scale. Public procurement, corporate offtake commitments, and harmonized standards were highlighted as key levers to build early demand and give industry the confidence to invest in new production pathways.

Speakers

• Welcome Remarks: Dhruva Jaishankar, Executive Director, ORF America 

• Dolf Gielen, Senior Energy Economist and Hydrogen Lead, The World Bank

• Kyle Disselkoen, Senior Associate, Industrial Decarbonization, Bloomberg NEF  

• Moderator: Piyush Verma, Senior Fellow, ORF America

Participants

• Caroline Arkalji, ORF America

• Jeffrey D. Bean, ORF America

• Zachary Byrum, World Resources Institute (WRI)

• Sakshi Chandra, Sustainable Energy for All

• Milan Elkerbout, Resources for the Future (RFF)

• David Kelm, Silverado Policy Accelerator

• Minji Jeong, EFI Foundation

• Mahnaz Khan, Silverado Policy Accelerator

• Vikrum Mathur, Tata Group

• Colin McMillan, Industrious Labs

• Alan Mitchell, Clean Air Task Force

• Sheran Munasinghe, Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI)

• Ed Nichols, RRPT

• Suyog Padgaonkar, Climate Imperative

• Satvik Pendyala, American Enterprise Institute

• Medha Prasanna, ORF America

• Priscila Putzulu, McLarty Associates

• Abigail Regitsky, Blue Horizons Foundation

• Nayan Seth, Independent Consultant

• Eliza Sheff, Clean Air Task Force

• Neelam Singh, World Resources Institute (WRI)

• Bishal Thapa, CLASP

• Nora Todd, Independent Consultant

• Naoki Tsuji, Japan Bank for International Cooperation