Kuala lumpur: Malaysia is well-positioned to spearhead the development of smart and sustainable energy across the ASEAN region, particularly through the establishment of the ASEAN Power Grid (APG), according to Tenaga Nasional Bhd's (National Energy Limited) senior chief strategy, regulatory and sustainability officer, Muhamad Nazri Pazil. According to BERNAMA News Agency, Muhamad Nazri highlighted Malaysia's strategic location in the heart of ASEAN, its world-class grid infrastructure, mature energy ecosystem, and supportive energy transition policies as key factors that provide the country with an advantage to assume a larger regional role. He emphasized that Malaysia's strategic position facilitates collaboration with utility partners via the APG, enabling energy sharing to meet high demand in particular countries. Muhamad Nazri made these remarks during Bernama TV's Ruang Bicara programme, where he also discussed the upcoming Energy Transition Conference (ETCon26), scheduled from June 3 to 5, 2026, at t he Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. The conference is expected to be a crucial platform for ASEAN countries to explore accelerating the APG's realization. It will gather about 2,000 delegates from various countries and technical backgrounds, fostering discussions on the APG's advancement. In terms of cross-border energy cooperation, Muhamad Nazri pointed to the Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore (LTMS) initiative as the first interconnection facilitating commercial power transfers and bolstering supply security. Additionally, five more projects, including the Vietnam-Malaysia-Singapore (VMS) interconnection and the Sarawak-Peninsular Malaysia-Singapore link, are in planning and feasibility stages. He noted that the enhanced connectivity among ASEAN countries would fortify energy supply security, particularly in light of geopolitical issues and rising gas costs. Cooperative efforts would enable the transmission of renewable energy, such as hydropower from Laos and wind energy from Vietnam, to countries includin g Malaysia and Singapore. Regarding ETCon26, Muhamad Nazri announced that Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim would officiate the event, with Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Fadillah Yusof delivering the keynote address. The conference will feature over 80 speakers and 40 sponsors hosting booths. Muhamad Nazri emphasized the integration of energy and artificial intelligence (AI) as a focus of ETCon26, advocating for the conference to translate into concrete follow-up actions through strategic collaboration, investment, and implementation. He revealed plans for 16 strategic partnership exchanges and launches during the event, aiming to catalyze the actual implementation of the energy transition with visible impacts in the short, medium, and long term.