KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will need 9 gigawatts (GW) of new gas-fired power generation capacity to address rising electricity demand as the country moves toward its plan of fully retiring its coal-fired power plants by 2044, the economy minister said on Tuesday.
* Energy demand is seen rising substantially amid a boom in AI data centres, Akmal said, with higher temperatures due to climate change also expected to drive up consumption.
* Malaysia is the fastest-growing data-centre hub in Southeast Asia, attracting billions of dollars in investments from major global tech firms including Amazon and Microsoft.
* New gas generation capacity will be needed as Malaysia looks to retire the last of its coal power plants by 2044, Akmal told reporters at an Energy Commission conference.
* "This is the planning ... to ensure that we will be able to manage the demand," he said. - Reuters
