Don't goad Malaysia to set too high a target for renewable energy: Minister

KUALA LUMPUR: Industry players should not urge Malaysia to set too high a target for renewable energy (RE) without thinking about the cost of electricity supply that consumers have to bear, said Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah.

In planning the country's electricity supply, he said the government had taken the approach to balance the three elements in the energy trilemma - guarantee of energy supply, affordability and sustainability.

He said the government had set a RE target of 31 per cent of the generation capacity for 2025, hence, the electricity sector is expected to reduce the intensity of carbon emissions by 45 per cent for the period.

"In addition, efforts to sustain the country's electricity supply should also be implemented through consistent and transparent distribution policies and quota approvals to give investors confidence to continue investing in the country's RE development industry,” he said.

The minister said this at the National Energy Awards (NEA) 2020, appreciation ceremony here today.

He said the government will also continue with the policy of approval of RE quota through open bid to create a conducive RE industry development ecosystem thus promoting fair competition as well as ensuring that tariff rates remained low.

Meanwhile, Shamsul Anuar said the average electricity disruption rate recorded in Peninsular Malaysia is less than 50 minutes yearly and the lowest compared to other countries in Southeast Asia.

In fact, he said the rate of electricity disruption in Peninsular Malaysia is equivalent to developed countries such as Denmark, France and the United Kingdom, yet Malaysians pay lower tariff rates than those countries.

The NEA 2020 appreciation ceremony toasted 30 winning companies which later represented Malaysia at the ASEAN Energy Awards (AEA) 2020 where 15 of them won in various categories.

Among the winners were Honda Showroom and Care Centre, Jelebu Hospital (Negeri Sembilan), Top Glove Factory 29, Amcorp Power Sdn Bhd, Concord Green Energy Sdn Bhd and Sime Darby Plantation Berhad. - Bernama