KUALA LUMPUR: The government has approved the allocation and redistribution of a new 1,200-megawatt (MW) quota of renewable energy to help boost the country’s commitment to energy transition, says the Prime Minister.
Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said with the virtual power purchase agreement, the government expects to create 14,000 job opportunities and bring in new investments worth RM6bil to support the development of the country’s renewable energy industry.
He said the new quota would be distributed to implement programmes under existing mechanisms and solar installation programmes on the roofs of government buildings.
He added that it would also be allocated to the exploration of new renewable energy implementation programme methods, such as solar park development, electricity supply for new data centres, as well as the generation of green hydrogen.
The Prime Minister noted that the government had undertaken a pilot initiative to develop Pulau Redang and Pulau Perhentian in Terengganu into “green energy” islands with a consistent, affordable, low-carbon power supply.
“Consumers on the two resort islands would receive round-the-clock energy supply by 2025, thereby reducing about 70% of greenhouse gas emissions,” he said at the launch of the Fifth International Sustainable Energy Summit 2022 here yesterday.
Ismail Sabri said the government was also developing a clear national Renewable Energy Certification (REC) framework with proper governance and regulation to ensure our RECs have credibility, transparency and high value.
“This will convince corporate companies to offset their carbon footprint from fossil fuel generation sources through REC instruments,” he said.
He also announced that Tenaga Nasional Bhd, with the cooperation of Syarikat MySuri Biz Technologies Sdn Bhd, would provide 1,000 electric vehicle taxis to support the country’s decarbonisation efforts.
Also present at the event were Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, Deputy Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Ali Biju and International Renewable Energy Agency director-general Francesco La Camera.
The Prime Minister said the current global trend in setting aggressive targets to reduce carbon footprints had positively impacted Malaysia, opening up new economic and business opportunities for local renewable energy industry players.
“Since Malaysia has a strong renewable energy industry value chain from the manufacturing stage to service supply, we should use it to full advantage to attract green and high-value investments.
“The aspiration should be supported by formulating more competitive electricity generation and supply planning based on current developments and demands.
“This includes having a flexible and responsible supply mechanism through modern and smart technology to handle higher renewable energy growth and manage energy demand efficiently.
“This is important to make Malaysia more capable of attracting foreign direct investments with its ability to provide access to quality green electricity supply,” he said.
Ismail Sabri said the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry had been tasked with leading the charge by improving the existing power supply policy and regulatory framework to align with current needs and demands.
He also welcomed the preliminary report of the Malaysia Energy Transition Outlook study on energy transition scenarios that the country could implement.
“I hope the final report later will become the guideline for the direction of the country’s energy transition until 2050, and contribute more to our aspiration to be a carbon-neutral nation by 2050,” he added.
