KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government is expected to table three Bills to supplement the transfer of regulatory control over the electricity supply from the Federal Government to the state at the state assembly in November.
The Bills to be tabled next month comprised the Electric Supply Enactment Bill, Renewable Energy Enactment Bill and Energy Commission Enactment Bill.
This is after the Dewan Rakyat on Monday (Oct 3) passed two Bills in preparation for the reassignment of autonomous power in the supply of electricity to the Sabah state government.
The two Bills were the Renewable Energy (Amendment) Bill 2022 and the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2022.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor (pic) said the state government welcomes the passing of these two Bills as it would pave the way for Sabah to regain regulatory control over power supply.
Hajiji said the two Bills were tabled following the high-powered meeting initiated by him and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan in Putrajaya last August.
The meeting was held in order to set the plan in motion for Sabah to regulate its own electricity and gas supply as well as regain control of power utility company Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB).
“Plans are now being rolled out and this will include the setting up of the Sabah Energy Commission so that the electricity supply regulatory authority can be transferred from the Federal Government to Sabah,” he said in a statement here on Tuesday (Oct 4).
At the state level, he added that, after the tabling of the three Bills in the state assembly next month, the Sabah government is expected to take back SESB with zero liabilities once the SESB Transformation Plan is completed within five to seven years from now.
According to Hajiji, the state government was working hard to ensure a smooth transition and that everything will go according to plan.
The Parliament passed the Renewable Energy (Amendment) Bill 2022 and the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2022 by a majority voice vote after the second reading on Monday.
Tabling the bills, Takiyuddin said it was in preparation for the reassignment of autonomous power in the supply of electricity to the Sabah government.
Takiyuddin also said the amendments to the Renewable Energy Act 2011 (Act 725) and the Sustainable Energy Development Authority Act 2011 (Act 726) were in line with the government's commitment to review the implementation of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 related to autonomous rights and powers allocated under the Federal Constitution to the states of Sabah and Sarawak.
Amendments to the two Acts included a new subsection that gives the minister the power to suspend wholly or any provision of the two Acts in different parts of Malaysia.
