Yayasan Sabah seals deal to produce renewable energy
18 Oct 2022
Yayasan Sabah sealed a joint-venture agreement to produce renewable energy through mini hydroelectric power plants throughout Sabah to complement the State’s electricity supply generation.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor said that by making use of Sabah’s climate and rivers, mini hydroelectric power plants are among the holistic solutions to the power supply shortage in the state.
“I am confident that this joint-venture agreement will contribute to stable power supply to Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) and attract quality investments,” he said.
The Chief Minister witnessed the joint-venture and shareholders agreement signing ceremony at Menara Kinabalu here on Tuesday.
He said increasing the usage of renewable energy was in line with Federal Government’s policy and Sustainable Development Goals as well as with one of the three main thrusts of the Hala Tuju Sabah Maju Jaya which is green infrastructure and sustainability networks.
“Generation of green energy such as the small hydroelectric power plants will attract more investors, particularly those prioritising green energy and environment, social and governance,” he said.
It would support the growth and development of Sabah’s economy besides benefiting the local industry and community, opening up more job opportunities, and creating paths for professional careers, he said.
“In fact, the Parliament had recently passed the Renewable Energy (Amendment) Bill 2022 and the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2022 that paved the way for the setting up of Sabah’s own Energy Commission to fully manage the state’s power supply.
“This historical achievement will allow Sabah to gain total control of its power supply management including planning distribution to more households as well as commercial areas. This is a major step towards achieving the Sabah Maju Jaya development plan objective,” he said.
A better power supply infrastructure augured well with the State Government’s SMJ investment initiatives to attract more investors to Sabah.
Some of the major investors that had come to Sabah were the Korean copper foil firm, SK Nexilis, which had opened up a 100-acre factory with an investment value of RM4.2 billion as well as SBH Kibing, a China company that had also set up its multi-million factory in Sabah, both at the Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP).
Hence, the Chief Minister said the State Government welcomed the joint-venture initiative between Yayasan Sabah and a prominent renewable energy company, Gcapital Berhad.
Under the agreement, several mini hydroelectric power plants along the mini rivers in Kota Belud will be built with a total power capacity of 65 megawatt.
“The State Cabinet will continue to be supportive of project proposals that benefit the state and its people,” he said.
Signing the agreement on behalf of Yayasan Sabah was chairman of its subsidiary company, Innoprise Synergy Sdn Bhd, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia while GCapital Berhad was represented by the director of its wholly-owned company CM Creative Itinerary Sdn Bhd, Zulkepli Mishat.
Also present were State Secretary Datuk Seri Panglima Sr Safar Untong, State Attorney-General Datuk Nor Asiah Mohd Yusof, Yayasan Sabah Director, Datuk Gulamhaidar Khan Bahadar, Palm Oil Industrial Cluster (POIC) Chairman, Datuk Seri Panglima Yong Teck Lee, Qhazanah Sabah Berhad Chairman, Datuk Seri Panglima Salleh Tun Said, Federation of Chinese Association Malaysia (Huazong) President, Tan Sri Goh Tian Chuan and G Capital Berhad Executive Director, Datuk Yap Yee Ping.
Source: The Borneo Post
