7th July 2026
Why Asia’s energy shock will hasten the clean transition
USD 100 oil is the best advertisement for EVs, says former Philippines energy secretary Vince Pérez, who believes the Iran war is speeding up Asia's energy transition.
In November 2002, the Philippine Energy Secretary Vince Pérez accompanied his President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to a fateful meeting at the White House. It was at this gathering that President George W. Bush hinted to his unsuspecting guests that the US was about to go to war with Iraq.
Pérez remembers his stomach churning. He knew that, for a country that imported over 90% of its petroleum and relied heavily on Middle Eastern crude, the conflict could trigger energy shortages, runaway inflation and economic instability.
Pérez recalls: “My president whispered to me: ‘Vince, you’re the energy secretary. Make sure we have adequate petroleum supply.'”
He spent the following several months preparing for every eventuality. He travelled to neighbouring Indonesia and Brunei, to Gulf producers of Iran, the UAE and Qatar, and as far as Moscow to secure bilateral oil supply deals. At the same time, he built buffer stocks and pursued alternative energy sources like renewables and geothermal power.
Pérez’s efforts paid off. The Philippines was spared the worst of the disruptions.
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