Southeast Asia: Regional Collaboration and Project Incentives

The policy dynamics in Southeast Asia are mainly focused on capacity building, project competitions and specific local investments within the framework of smart cities. 

Ⅰ.Regional Smart City Framework: At the 8th ASEAN Smart City Network (ASCN) Annual Conference hosted in Malaysia, all parties discussed the "ASEAN Smart City Action Plan (ASCAP) 2026-2035", with the core objective being to build greener, more inclusive, and more digital cities. Meanwhile, the 6th ASEAN Digital Ministers' Meeting adopted the "Hanoi Digital Cooperation Declaration", emphasizing that green transformation and artificial intelligence should be the foundation of digital development. 

Ⅱ.Energy-saving building project solicitation: The "Urban and Regional Positive Energy Buildings Challenge" initiated by the RENEW-SEA project is currently seeking projects in Malaysia and Indonesia. This challenge aims to showcase the best practices of public buildings in areas such as renewable energy, energy efficiency upgrades, digital solutions (such as Building Energy Management Systems BEMS), and innovative business models. The application deadline is March 2, 2026. 

Ⅲ.Local funds and specific policies: 

（1）Selangor state of Malaysia has received 450 million ringgit (approximately 450 million RMB) in special funds for developing smart city projects such as smart connectivity, public safety and traffic management. 

（2）The Vietnamese government has issued the "Decree No. 30/2026/NĐ-CP", which provides detailed regulations for the implementation of the "Energy Conservation Law". It is clearly stated that public buildings with annual energy consumption exceeding 500 tons of oil equivalent (such as office buildings, schools, and hospitals) will be classified as key energy-consuming units and are required to formulate energy-saving plans and may undergo energy audits.

EU: Regulation-driven and Mandatory Upgrades

The policies of the European Union are highly binding and have a clear timeline, mainly based on the revised "Building Energy Efficiency Directive" (EPBD). 

Ⅰ.Zero-emission target for new buildings: According to the EPBD, all new public buildings must meet the zero-emission standard as of January 1, 2028; all new buildings will be subject to this requirement starting from January 1, 2030. 

Ⅱ.Requirements for intelligent transformation of existing buildings: The directive has significantly lowered the threshold for mandatory installation of building automation and control systems (BACS). For non-residential buildings, such systems (including heating, air conditioning, etc.) must be installed when their rated output exceeds 70 kilowatts. This standard must be implemented by 2029. 

Ⅲ.Introduce intelligent readiness indicators: The European Commission is expected to report on the testing of intelligent readiness indicators (SRI) in June 2026 and plans to introduce legislation by June 2027, mandating that large non-residential buildings use SRI for assessment. This will become a key tool for measuring the level of building intelligence.