SUBANG JAYA: Malaysia is determined to build a resilient energy system that is secure, affordable and sustainable as the country pursues higher-value economic growth, says Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir.
Akmal said the government’s priority was not merely to increase energy production, but to ensure the system could withstand future pressures while remaining flexible enough to support investment and economic expansion.
“Our priority is not simply to produce more energy.
“It is to build an energy system that is secure, affordable and sustainable, with the resilience and flexibility needed to support a higher-value economy,” he said in his speech at the Energy Regulatory Insights 2026, which he officiated on Tuesday (Sept 8).
He said Malaysia had already established its long-term direction under the National Energy Transition Roadmap, with renewable energy targeted to account for 40% of installed capacity by 2035 and 70% by 2050.
The higher target, he said, was expected to create new economic opportunities and attract multinational companies, particularly RE100 firms seeking access to cleaner energy.
Akmal said the immediate challenge was implementation, including turning policy into commercially viable projects, connecting new capacity to the grid and ensuring regulation kept pace with technological and investment changes.
He cited the LSS Petra 5+ programme, which is expected to add almost 2GW of large-scale solar capacity, mobilise about RM6bil in investment and create around 12,000 jobs as projects begin coming onstream from 2027.
However, he stressed that adding renewable generation alone would not be enough.
“The energy transition will not be won by megawatts alone. It will be won by whether the grid can connect, balance and deliver those megawatts reliably,” he said.
Akmal identified three priorities for the next phase of reform - creating a competitive and progressive energy market, modernising the grid, and treating energy efficiency as an energy resource in its own right.
He said Malaysia’s first National Energy Efficiency Action Plan delivered cumulative electricity savings of 60,886 gigawatt-hours, equivalent to RM16.1bil, between 2016 and 2025.
Under NEEAP 2.0, he said Malaysia is targeting an 11.6% reduction in energy demand against the business-as-usual scenario by 2035.
“Energy efficiency is not about asking industry to grow less. It is about producing more economic value from every unit of energy consumed,” Akmal said.
He added that Malaysia’s expanding economy and investment pipeline made energy resilience increasingly important, with RM218.5bil in approved investments secured in the first half of 2026.
“Energy planning and investment planning can no longer proceed on separate tracks,” he said.
