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Author	Mr Pascal Joe Yap
Organisation/Institution	Universitas Pelita Harapan, Faculty of Law
Country	INDONESIA
Panel	International Regulation of Trade
Title	Battery Barriers: ACFTA and RCEP Technical Barriers to Trade and Their Impact on EV Supply Chain Integration
Abstract	The growth of Asia’s EV battery supply chain has outpaced the development of legal frameworks for harmonizing technical standards and conformity procedures. Divergent national regulations continue to raise compliance costs, delay cross-border manufacturing, and risk undermining Indonesia’s ambition to become a regional EV battery hub. While existing Asian economic integration has focused heavily on tariff reduction and investment, there has been less attention given to the legal framework governing Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), despite their major role in determining supply chain interoperability. This paper addresses that gap by comparing how the ASEAN–China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) regulate TBT in strategic sectors. Focusing on EV battery standards (HS 8507), the paper examines how ACFTA’s cooperation-based TBT framework contrasts with RCEP’s binding, WTO-aligned obligations on standards, equivalence, and conformity assessment. This paper employs a doctrinal comparative method to evaluate which FTA framework provides a more coherent approach to harmonization and how these differences influence Indonesia’s integration into regional EV battery supply chains. Although ACFTA concluded its 3.0 upgrade in 2024, this paper relies on the operative ACFTA 2.0 text to establish a stable legal baseline for assessing the upgrade’s future implications. The paper concludes by proposing institutional and regulatory strategies to accelerate ASEAN-wide convergence of EV battery standards. Keywords: ACFTA, RCEP, Technical Barriers to Trade, EV battery standards, Indonesia
Biography	I am Pascal Joe Yap, a third-year Business Law student at Universitas Pelita Harapan. I previously served as the Head of Competition for the International Law Moot Court Community (ILMCC) for the 2024–2025 term, where I assisted in preparing monthly legal articles and coordinated the management and development of ILMCC moot court teams. I also participated as a researcher in the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, contributing to my team’s national championship win and its placement of 49th out of 152 teams in the international rounds in Washington, D.C. I currently serve as a research assistant at the UPH Executive Education Center, under the guidance of Prof. Michelle Engel Limenta, S.H., LL.M., Ph.D., where I assist with and contribute to research projects and conference preparations. These opportunities have strengthened my ability to conduct structured legal research, analyze complex issues, and communicate findings with clarity. While I maintain a broad interest in legal studies, I have recently developed a particular interest in the fields of trade law, energy law, and tax law, which reflect emerging policy questions both globally and within Indonesia. Moving forward, I aim to further expand my research experience and contribute to ongoing discussions on legal developments.