To set the world on climate-compatible pathway, it is critical to speed up the energy transformation by replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy. Bioenergy has key roles to play in this energy transformation as a source of energy and as a feedstock in all end-use sectors. Bioenergy use will be particularly important in sectors that are hard to electrify, such as aviation and some energy-intensive industries. According to IRENA's climate-compatible scenario, modern bioenergy use would grow considerably from 28 EJ in 2017 to 125 EJ in 2050.

Southeast Asia is a real proving ground for the energy transformation as the region will have to cope with meeting ever-increasing energy demand while reducing fossil fuels consumption and yet several million people still lack reliable electricity access. The potential of sustainable bioenergy should be fully exploited to meet these challenges.
In Southeast Asia, not only does the palm oil have the huge potential as feedstocks for biofuels, but its residue and waste products such as PKS, EFB, POME and old palm trunk can be utilized as the source of renewable energy in multiple ways. Furthermore, the palm oil sector can be a major contributor to bioeconomy providing food, chemicals and fiber materials.

Such versatility of the products derived from the oil palm industry points to the need to understand its sustainability in a broader context. While minimizing the impact on biodiversity and reducing GHG emissions constitute the critical component of sustainability governance, positive effects and externalities from making use of residues and wastes for low carbon economy also need to be taken into account.