KUCHING: Sarawak Energy (SEB) – Malaysia’s largest renewable energy developer and provider – is capitalising on Sarawak’s abundant natural resources to drive renewable energy development.
Its chairman Datuk Amar Abdul Hamed Sepawi said Sarawak has harnessed its significant hydropower potential to drive socio-economic development, which allows Sarawak Energy to launch Sarawak’s first Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) in 2019.
Renewable hydropower, he said, has also enabled Sarawak to explore alternative renewables like solar and green hydrogen in addition to decarbonising the power system by 73 per cent between 2010 and 2021.
“Aligned with this commitment to decarbonisation, we have also explored carbon capture and storage (CCS) and recently launched the Chitose Carbon Capture Central Sarawak facility – the state’s first carbon capture project through microalgae.
“This new facility will also produce biomass, which can be used for the creation of commercial products,” he said.
“To address the intermittency associated with some variable renewables like solar, we also embarked on a pilot Battery Energy Storage System (BESS),” he added.
He was speaking at the third edition of the Sustainability and Renewable Energy Forum, (SAREF 3.0) powered by Sarawak Energy held at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching here today, which was officiated by Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.
In the interest of common prosperity across Southeast Asia, Abdul Hamed said Sarawak Energy is pursuing regional interconnections to share renewable energy resources and their associated benefits with neighbours to uplift the quality of life across the region.
“We established our first interconnection with Kalimantan, Indonesia in 2016 and are now exploring interconnections with Brunei and Singapore towards realising the Asean Power Grid, with the prospect of positioning Sarawak as the Battery of Asean,” he said.
Themed ‘Renewable Energy Development and Interconnections’, he said, the forum will focus on business, government and civil society collaborations and partnerships that can chart the energy transition pathway towards sustainability and net zero emissions in Southeast Asia.
“It is already widely reported that this past July was the hottest month ever measured and extreme weather events and heatwaves are increasingly common.
“Climate change is not a distant prophecy and as energy leaders and sustainability driven decision makers, SAREF 3.0 is our immediate opportunity to identify what we need to do to deliver effective actions,” he added.
