Call for more solar power plants

KUALA LUMPUR: The Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry (KeTTHA) will be calling for a request for proposal (RFP) to develop 250-megawatt (MW) capacity generation from utility-scale solar power plants this year, according to its secretary-general Datuk Loo Took Gee.

“We will be issuing an RFP for 250MW solar power plants this year and the capacity of these plants should come on stream from 2018 onwards.

“We have approved two utility-scale solar projects to fast track the renewable energy generation and they must deliver by 2017,” she said at launch of the 4th Asean Energy Outlook by the Asean Centre for Energy (ACE) yesterday.

Loo, however, did not disclose when the Government would issue the RFP, but said the process could take up about six months.

The Government has so far awarded 200MW in generation capacity from utility scale solar power plants on a fast-track basis.

“We have agreed to scale up electricity generation from renewable energy (RE) and agreed to launch two fast track project to be deliverable in 2017,” Loo said, adding that the country was still far from achieving its RE target.

She said the Government would continue to take proactive measures to increase the generation of energy from renewable sources.

Loo said a 50MW solar plant had been awarded to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) while the remaining 150MW was awarded to a “consortium that is financially and technically strong” without disclosing the name.

In April 2014, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) announced that it has signed a 25-year power-purchase agreement (PPA) with Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) to buy power to be generated by 1MDB Solar Sdn Bhd’s solar photovoltaic (solar PV) plant in Kedah.

On the rates for the RFP to be called, Loo said: “We want the best price. We want to tap the best value.”

Apart from utility-scale solar facility, Loo said the Government had also approved Net Energy Metering (NEM) mechanism.

NEM allowed consumers to install solar photovoltaic panels on the rooftop of premises and they can net off their electricity bills in generating more electricity during daylight hours.

Meanwhile, the 4th Asean Energy Outlook is a publication that provides comprehensive information and analysis on the main energy indicators of the 10 Asean Member States.

It provides an assessment of the region’s energy landscape by 2035 under two scenarios - business as usual (BaU) scenario and the advancing policy scenario (APS).