Companies told to drop manual systems as 2030 renewable deadline nears

They risk falling further behind if they fail to modernise.

Energy companies should drop the long-standing habit of “throwing people at problems” and move toward modern, digital operations, as the global push to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 gains urgency.

The warning is particularly relevant for Asia-Pacific companies that risk falling further behind if they fail to modernise, said Rakesh Nandakumar, associate vice president for Southeast Asia at software company Kissflow, Inc.

“If we don’t ride this wave and become digitised, bare minimum, in the next three to five years, I don’t think you can compete with the rest of the competition because people are just going to move in that direction,” he told Asian Power in an interview.

A recent ABB Energy Transition Readiness Index report shows the gap: 92% of the 4,085 regional energy leaders surveyed said they could do more to accelerate the shift, yet fewer than 15% are making full use of digital tools. Whilst 56% said they are confident in meeting transition goals, only 31% have set strong net-zero targets.

“Digital transformation has to be the biggest priority for any energy company,” Nandakumar said. “For renewables, even more so.”
Mitch Cabigon, chief information officer at SN Aboitiz Power Group (SNAP), said digital tools are key to the company’s growth.

“If we stay manual, it will be very hard for us to take advantage of opportunities,” she said in an interview. “We need to succeed in digital transformation to take full advantage.”

SNAP, a joint venture between Norway’s Scatec ASA and Aboitiz Renewables, Inc., runs a portfolio of hydropower assets in the Philippines, including the 112.5-megawatt (MW) Ambuklao and 140-MW Binga plants in Benguet province.

To speed up internal processes, SNAP tapped Kissflow to automate workflows across human resources, operations, and information technology service management. The rollout replaced legacy systems with more than 100 custom applications.

Since adopting Kissflow in 2021, SNAP has saved about $61,000 annually by eliminating outsourced maintenance, according to Nucleus Research.

The company posted a 451% return on investment and recovered project costs in less than three months—meaning every dollar spent returned $4.51. Operational efficiency in human resource and plant operations improved by as much as 10%.

Nandakumar said energy companies should rethink how they work if they want to keep pace.

“It’s time to look at your entire organisation and ask: ‘Can my people become problem-solvers instead of just pointing out problems?’” he said. “That change of thought process is the biggest mandate that every transformational leader should pick up.”