Asian Development Bank announces $70B plan for energy, digital infrastructure

The Asian Development Bank on Sunday announced $70 billion in new energy and digital infrastructure initiatives through 2035.

"Energy and digital access will define the region's future," said the bank's President Masato Kanda in a statement.

The Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative will link national and subregional power systems to enable the flow of renewable energy, while the Asia-Pacific Digital Highway aims to close digital infrastructure gaps and support AI-driven growth across the region.

"These two initiatives build the systems Asia and the Pacific need to grow, compete, and connect.

"By linking power grids and digital networks across borders, we can lower costs, expand opportunity, and bring reliable power and digital access to hundreds of millions of people," he added.

The Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative targets $50 billion by 2035 for cross-border power infrastructure.

The Asia-Pacific Digital Highway aims to mobilize $20 billion by 2035 to fund digital infrastructure and AI-ready economies, including fiber networks, satellites, and regional data centers.

The bank aims to integrate around 20 gigawatts of cross-border renewable energy, expand energy access to 200 million people, create 840,000 jobs, and cut regional power sector emissions by 15% by 2035.