Sabah welcomed to discuss on its future role in SESB
Published on: Saturday, September 05, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: The State Government is welcomed to discuss with the Federal Government and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) on their future role in Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) as the sole provider of electricity in Sabah. According to Datuk Daniel Kinsik who is the Political Secretary of Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili, SESB is owned 80 per cent by TNB and 20 per cent by the State Government. "All major infrastructures in the transmission and distribution segments in Sabah are funded by the Federal Government through grants and loans to SESB," he said.
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"The aim is to ensure the grants given to SESB, as a non-government entity, are disbursed efficiently and projects funded meet their desired results." Kinsik said this in response to Sabah DAP Organising Chairman Junz Wong's statement claiming that SESB is actually making good money but that 71 per cent of SESB's revenue went to the Independent Power Producers (IPPs). Wong also claimed that Sabahans were exploited by having to pay high tariffs and the Minister should ensure SESB or the State Government own all power plants built in Sabah.According to Kinsik, the Ministry regulates the electricity supply industry including SESB.
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The electricity supply industry comprises generation, transmission and distribution segments and to ensure adequate and reliable electricity supply in Sabah, huge investments costing billions of ringgit are required, he explained. Kinsik said the average cost of electricity supply at 60.67sen/kWh in Sabah is also higher than the average tariff charged to Sabah consumers at 34.52sen/kWh, resulting in SESB being unable to generate sufficient income to sustain itself.
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Therefore, the tariff imposed in Sabah is still lower than in Peninsula, at 38.53sen/kWh. He said from the 8th Malaysia Plan to the 10th Malaysia Plan, the Federal Government provided RM3,267.90 million in grants and loans to SESB to improve the electricity supply in Sabah. "On top of that, the Federal Government provided fuel subsidy to the tune of RM 5,378 million from 2005 till August 2015," he said. The situation is similar in the Peninsula with TNB."The Federal Government will ensure that the tariffs charged by the generators, for example, IPPs and SESB or TNB, are reasonable. This is to ensure a fair return on investment without burdening the rakyat," he said. The electricity generation segment in Sabah has been liberalised, he added."Currently, there are 16 IPPs including Small Renewable Energy Plants (SREP) generating 1,136MW installed capacity and 996.28MW dependable capacity of electricity alongside with SESB. "The share of IPPs in electricity generation is 76 per cent for installed capacity and 75 per cent for dependable capacity of the total electricity generation. Currently, Sabah's total electricity installed capacity is at 1,501.9MW and total dependable capacity is at 1,323.88MW," he said.Kinsik said that as has been apparent from the many generator projects awarded either through a bidding exercise or direct award, the Federal Government and the Energy Commission have always held closely to the principle that the tariffs charged are reasonable. "By ensuring multiple players in the generator sector, it will encourage competition and further investment which will enhance reliability and efficiency in the electricity system."To further resolve the issue of reliability and security of electricity supply in Sabah, the Federal Government has established the Sabah Special Project Planning and Delivery Unit (Sapadu) this year," he said, adding that its tasks include monitoring and supervising electricity supply projects in Sabah. Under Sapadu, the Federal Government had allocated RM2.3 billion in grants to implement 81 projects from 2015 until 2020, mainly consisting of transmission and distribution projects.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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