KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Aug. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- GAC is proud to be one of Chelsea FC's Official Pre-Season Tour Partners in Hong Kong and Malaysia. The partnership sees GAC standing behind the Men's First Team during both legs of the tour.
As one of the most successful Premier League clubs of the 21st century, Chelsea FC boasts a passionate global fan base. This pre-season tour marks the club's return to the Asia-Pacific region, with the Men's First Team set to play high-profile fixtures across Australia, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia and Malaysia. Chelsea FC will face Italian giants Juventus at Hong Kong's Kai Tak Stadium on 5 August before taking on Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta'zim at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor Bahru on 9 August. The two fixtures provide an exciting platform for GAC and Chelsea FC to engage with football fans across the region.
As a Fortune Global 500 company, GAC has continued to accelerate its global expansion in recent years. Through collaborations with renowned football clubs, including Sydney FC (Australia), Deportivo Toluca (Mexico), Flamengo (Brazil), and Millonarios (Colombia), GAC has further enhanced its international brand influence.
This partnership is underpinned by GAC's growing presence in Hong Kong (China) and Malaysia. In Hong Kong, GAC ranked No.1 in the private electric vehicle market in April 2026, while its cumulative market share exceeded 10% during the first half of the year, further reinforcing its leadership in the city's new energy vehicle sector. Meanwhile, the GS3 EMZOOM and EMKOO, locally assembled in Malaysia through CKD production, have continued to gain strong market recognition among local consumers.
GAC stated that the speed, passion and team spirit embodied in football closely align with the brand's pursuit of driving excellence and its unwavering commitment to exceeding customer expectations. By partnering with a world-class football club like Chelsea FC, GAC aims to enhance its brand presence across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond, showcasing its innovation, quality and commitment to smarter mobility. Looking ahead, GAC will continue to strengthen its global footprint through innovation, quality and collaboration, creating greener, smarter and more sustainable mobility solutions for customers worldwide.
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GAC Named an Official Pre-Season Tour Partner of Chelsea Football Club for the Hong Kong and Malaysia Tour
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Aug. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Fair Finance Asia (FFA) and Influencing Just Energy Transition in the ASEAN (I-JET) call on banks and investors to stop financing coal expansion and strengthen social safeguards.
In a new report, Phasing out Coal, Phasing in Justice: Roadmap for Financing a Responsible Regional Coal Phase-out in Asia, FFA and I-JET assess the transition landscape in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, the Philippines, and Thailand, and in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), more broadly.
While ASEAN member states have introduced coal moratoriums, updated Nationally Determined Contributions, early-retirement plans for coal-fired power plants, green taxonomies, and carbon pricing, the report finds that these still fall short of a Paris-aligned 1.5°C pathway.
International coal finance restrictions have expanded, yet funding persists through corporate lending and upstream mining. Meanwhile, liquefied natural gas (LNG) is being positioned as a bridge fuel despite high costs, price volatility, stranded assets, and fossil fuel lock-in.
To achieve a credible, just phase-out, the report recommends:
- No new coal development, including for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital demand.
- Time-bound, enforceable phase-out plans with zero unabated coal.
- Permanent retirement or conversion of all units, with site remediation.
- An end to coal financing, including for false solutions.
- Binding just transition commitments.
The report also calls for strong social safeguards:
- Income support, reskilling, and decent green jobs for affected workers.
- Meaningful participation, free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC), and secure land rights for Indigenous Peoples.
- Gender-responsive policies.
- Protection of civic space and environmental and human rights defenders.
Bernadette Victorio, Program Lead, Fair Finance Asia, said: "The test is not only whether coal-fired power plants close, but whether the energy transition reduces inequality by protecting the rights and amplifying the voices of workers, communities, women and Indigenous Peoples."
Shubert Ciencia, Energy Justice and ASEAN Influencing Program Manager, Oxfam in Asia, said: "The ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) 2026-2030 signals ASEAN's intent to accelerate decarbonization while maintaining energy security. Member states must now restrict investment in existing coal projects and prohibit new ones."
Victoria Fanggidae, Executive Director, The PRAKARSA, said: "Climate commitments are meaningless if financial flows continue to support coal. Indonesian financial institutions must stop enabling coal expansion, redirect capital to renewable energy, and embed human rights and just transition principles in financing decisions."
Genalyn Arcayera-Aquino, Economic Rights Program Manager, Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS), said: "Fossil fuel incentives without a clear phase-out plan create a chicken-and-egg problem: reliance on imported fuels keeps electricity costs high and delays a domestic renewable energy industry."
Yuki Tanabe, Program Director, Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES), said: "Governments should drive early retirement of coal-fired power plants with stricter environmental regulations and higher taxes on coal generation."
Read the report: bit.ly/4wsaWt7
Media contacts:
Kyle Cruz
Influencing and Campaigning Manager
Fair Finance Asia
kylejuliene.cruz@oxfam.org
Shubert Ciencia
Energy Justice and ASEAN Influencing Program Manager
Oxfam in Asia
shubert.ciencia@oxfam.org
About Fair Finance Asia
FFA is a regional network of Asian civil society organizations working to ensure that financial institutions' funding decisions respect the social and environmental well-being of the communities where they operate. Learn more: fairfinanceasia.org
About Influencing Just Energy Transition in ASEAN
I-JET is a multi-country initiative advancing a gender-just and socially inclusive energy transition. Learn more: https://x.com/ijet_project
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Fair Finance Asia Calls on Banks to End Coal Financing in ASEAN and Strengthen Social Safeguards
