During the Twelfth SAARC Summit, the Council of Ministers at its Twenty-Fourth Session approved the most recent restructuring of the SAARC Integrated Programme of Action. Under the new Regional Integrated Programme of Action, (RIPA), seven Technical Committees were reorganized. At the same time five new Working Groups were created. The idea of Working Groups is new in SAARC. Working Groups have been especially created to focus on five new and emerging areas, namely, Energy, Tourism, ICT, Intellectual Property Rights and Biotechnology.

The Working Groups are intended to have higher profiles than the Technical Committees and to function along the lines of the Committee on Economic Cooperation that has been functioning for over a decade now.

As early as its Fifth Session (Dhaka, 4 December 1985) the Standing Committee approved the recommendation of the then Technical Committee on Science and Technology to hold a workshop on Renewable Energy. Since then, various activities were held in the energy sector under the auspices of the Technical Committee on Science and Technology.

Subsequently, cooperation in the energy sector was brought directly under the purview of the SAARC Integrated Programme of Action (SIPA) in January 2000 by establishing a new Technical Committee on Energy. The erstwhile Technical Committee on energy held two meetings to discuss issues related to cooperation in this field in the region. While focusing on the main mandate entrusted to this Working Group by the Leaders at their Twelfth Summit to study various possibilities for cooperation in the field of energy, including the concept of an Energy Ring.

Modalities in creating a South Asia Energy Cooperation including the concept of an Energy Ring. (Mandated by the Twelfth SAARC Summit (Islamabad 4-6 January 2004)

The Twenty-fifth Session of the Council of Ministers (Islamabad, 20-21 July 2004) approved the Report of the First Meeting of the Working Group on Energy (WORGEN) and recommended the following Plan of Action:

A South Asia Energy Forum at Ministerial level may be formed under the SAARC umbrella for exchange of views on policy issues and cooperation;
The possibility of setting up a SAARC Energy Centre may be explored;
A study may be carried out on options, benefits and constraints of energy trade in the region;
Exchange of information and technical discussions are prerequisites for cooperation and may be encouraged by the respective Governments;
Joint strategies may be evolved for global energy forums for the benefit of the Member States;
Countries of the region may benefit from each other’s experiences in institutional and pricing reforms in the energy sector;
In the long term, transnational energy lines (electricity, gas and oil) could provide basis for an integrated and prosperous economic future of South Asia;
Special focus is required on energy availability in rural areas, including conventional and non-conventional forms of energy for economic development and poverty reduction;
Non-conventional and renewable sources of energy may be promoted through sharing of manpower, expertise, know-how and training programmes;
Feasibility of establishing a Regional Fund for promoting non-conventional energy may be explored;
Energy efficiency and conservation may be promoted as a least cost option;
Cooperation on CNG use in transport may be promoted;
Lessons may be learnt from innovative projects in Member states such as Nepal electricity rickshaw project, Bangladesh rural electrification cooperative societies etc., and
A quarterly internet based SAARC Energy Newsletter may be posted by the Secretariat based on the information provided by the Member States.
The Group noted with appreciation that the recommendations made at the erstwhile Technical Committee Meeting merits continuity under the new framework of the Working Group. They decided to pursue cooperation in all recommended areas i.e.

Exchange of Energy information;
Environment friendly energy;
Creation of a Regional Power-Grid; and
Cooperation regarding renewable energy.

SAARC-ASEAN Cooperation in the Energy Sector
SAARC-ASEAN cooperation recently developed between the two Secretariats recommended the proposal of visit by the Experts from the SAARC region to relevant ASEAN institutions coordinated by the ASEAN Secretariat.