South-east Asia office workers swelter in energy-saving drive, heatwave

SINGAPORE – A heatwave sweeping across South-east Asia is making offices even warmer, as workers continue to adjust to energy-saving measures put in place by governments due to the war in Iran.

Many countries have imposed temperature controls at government workplaces since the war began, among other measures to conserve energy.

As the prolonged shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz drains energy reserves, relief does not look to be coming any time soon, with parts of the region set to bake in abnormally hot conditions in the months ahead.

Among the hardest-hit countries is Thailand, where temperatures have soared to above 40 deg C in recent weeks.

The Bangkok government has issued multiple “dangerous” heat warnings.

In March, the Thai government ordered public sector offices to set air-conditioner temperatures at 26 deg C to 27 deg C.

“Sometimes it even feels hard to breathe,” said Ms Pornpimol Sirimai, who works at the Health Ministry and has bought electric fans to cool down.

“The canteen and even the 7-Eleven downstairs are cooler than our office, which is why people end up gathering there.”

The onset of the El Nino weather system in the summer could make it even worse.

South-east Asia faces a “double whammy”, said Adjunct Associate Professor Emi Gui from Monash University in Malaysia.

“El Nino is likely to recreate extreme heat conditions, increasing the likelihood for both droughts and floods, threatening lives and agricultural activities.”

El Nino will likely also unleash drought conditions that can wither crops like rice, palm oil, rubber and sugar, and deplete water levels in dams used to generate electricity just as demand rises. 

Clothing is one way that governments are trying to ameliorate uncomfortable conditions in offices. 

At one branch of the Philippine Land Transportation Office (LTO), employees have been allowed to wear light, collared shirts instead of traditional attire, said Mr Zeus Marcelino, officer in charge at an LTO office in Manila.

In 2024, the government mandated that civil servants wear “ASEAN-inspired” or traditional Filipino clothing on Mondays.

The Philippines is 2026’s chair of the ASEAN summit and meetings.

In early March, the Philippines directed government offices to set their air-con units to no lower than 24 deg C. The country’s weather agency issued an El Nino alert on April 22.

At the central bank, the air-con is maintained at 25 deg C.

“It’s not that cold. But it’s not hot, meaning just enough,” said Mr Elmore Capule, a deputy governor at the central bank. “They are coping well. I think our employees understand that we are in a crisis situation.”

Malaysia, meanwhile, is promoting the wearing of traditional cotton batik shirts, and has also mandated that offices set air-con units to 24 deg C.

Mr Norhisham Khalid, who works at the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, said that the temperature adjustment is a good thing as the office was so cold before “that some people had to wear sweaters”.

In the meantime, South-east Asian governments are scrambling to find alternative energy supplies, even at elevated prices.

If the conflict drags on and the weather turns even hotter, the economies may go from facing an oil shock to a food shock, according to HSBC Holdings.

The economic fallout may last even longer – countries reliant on energy imports are bracing themselves for weaker growth, faster inflation and higher fiscal deficits. 

While measures like temperature controls are inconvenient, they can be a part of longer-term strategies to improve energy efficiency and conservation, said Monash University’s Prof Gui, who researches energy transition.

Thailand is planning to increase the use of biofuel blends to reduce crude oil demand, while Indonesia is speeding up the roll-out of a higher biodiesel blend to July instead of in 2027.

Indonesia has not mandated air-cons to be set to a particular level, but employees at government offices and state-owned companies said internal notices have asked for electricity use to be reduced.

In some cases, including at the parliamentary complex in Jakarta, air-cons, lights and escalators are being turned off earlier than usual.

In Singapore, government agencies have been directed to manage the operating times of air-cons, lighting and lifts.

The island’s residents were also reminded to use vouchers handed out by the government to buy energy-efficient appliances.

Some countries, including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, have sharply raised retail prices of diesel and petrol as the cost of subsidising them has become unsustainable.

Costly energy may prompt more prudent use even as it leads to some demand destruction, as evident in falling fuel sales in Thailand.

Some of that reduction in demand is coming from mandates by governments for employees to work from home.

That is helping people like Mr Norhisham, who goes to his office in Putrajaya, Malaysia’s administrative capital, only two days a week.

“I estimate that I will be able to save on one full tank of petrol a month by not driving to office,” he said.

“But, more importantly, I save about two hours a day driving to Putrajaya and am able to do more with the time saved.” BLOOMBERG