Exploring more renewable energy options
Published on: Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: The government will explore collaborations with relevant communities to ensure the sustainability of rural electrification systems, said Rural Development Minister Datuk Radin Maleh.He said the community's involvement from an early stage is important to reduce the cost of development and maintenance of the system."Partnerships with NGOs are encouraged to provide electricity supply for rural communities using micro hybrid and renewable energy (RE) sources.
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"RE has a long history in the electricity supply in Sabah, being part of the system since the start of utility-scale application in 1920s," Radin said when officiating the Seminar on Renewable Energy: Electrification for Rural Community, here, Tuesday.He further said that according to the Energy Commission, it has issued 1,005 private licences for off-grid application with a total installed capacity of 705MW, mostly fuelled by palm oil waste, wood waste and diesel.In 2014, the total capacity connected to the grid from biomass and mini hydro plants is 42.3MW, of which 33MW is from biomass while the rest is from mini hydro."RE contributed five per cent of total on-grid electricity generated in Sabah. For off-grid application with the total capacity of 705MW, 137MW is contributed by palm oil waste."
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Radin said RE may also contribute to poverty alleviation by providing the energy needed for creating businesses and employment as well as providing electricity to schools in rural areas."Many developing countries conduct rural electrification plans and policies to extend the grid connection and improve the standard of living for those who don't have access to an electricity supply," he said.
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For Sabah, Radin said, the strategy paper entitled 'Sustainable Usage of Energy to Support Growth' prepared for the 11th Malaysia Plan has highlighted that rural electrification programmes will be enhanced to improve national coverage of 99 per cent by 2020 from the current coverage of 94 per cent."The focus of rural electrification is to continue with off-grid generation for rural areas. Solar hybrid, mini and pico hydro will also be supported by off-grid networks to ensure wider coverage."This system is suitable for rural areas as it does not require construction of dams and has no impact on the environment," he said.Radin also said operational cost for power generation is extremely high and power producers like SESB face a great challenge and the problem has been aggravated by the inconsistent hike in fuel prices.Focus will be given in exploring new RE sources like wind, geothermal and ocean energy to diversify the generation mix."Renewable energy is not only an excellent power alternative for the future but it can also revolutionise electricity generation in Sabah."The State Government, he said, is committed in embarking on more aggressive strategies to promote large-scale use of green energy and supporting the development of RE in rural areas.As such, the government welcomes any party that can come forward to explore and apply green energy and simultaneously support the government's move to develop sustainable energy."This can be achieved by encouraging more research and investment in RE sectors to reduce Sabah and the country's general dependency on fossil fuels as primary energy sources.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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