Kota Kinabalu: Sabah has the potential to rival Sarawak’s hydrogen economy which was praised recently by the Prime Minister as a novel source of economic revenue for the country.
While Sarawak’s hydrogen economy is dependent on its cheap hydropower to generate green hydrogen, Sabah can harness its blue economy potential to produce green hydrogen.
The definition of Blue Economy is: “A regenerative economic model that combines rigorous and effective regeneration and protection of the ocean and marine and coastal ecosystems with sustainable, low or no carbon economic activities, and fair prosperity for people and planet, now and in the future.”
Prof. Dato’ Ir. Dr A. Bakar Jaafar said: “Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion or Otec is a method of converting part of the heat from the sun which is stored in the surface layers of a body of water into electrical energy or energy product equivalent.”
He is UTM Faculty of Artificial Intelligence Research Fellow cum Founding Director of UTM Ocean Thermal Energy Centre.
He was a panel speaker at the Sabah International Blue Economy Conference 2024 recently on “Blue Economy and Renewable Energy”.
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“Sabah is blessed with a deep sea that is close to its eastern region off the coastlines of Tawau-Semporna.
“In some areas the depth reaches beyond 700 metres and is within 15km off the coast.
“This maritime area is referred to as ‘Water Column’ that is ideal for Otec development and for harnessing the cold deep seawater and for generating renewable power.”
On the economics of green hydrogen generation, he postulated that 80 per cent of the cost of production of green hydrogen is through water electrolysis using electricity.
Since the cost of electricity generated by Otec is so competitive that it would also be so for the production of green hydrogen.
“The deep waters off the State of Sabah have the potential of generating renewable energy at least with the capacity of 20,0000 MW or with gross revenue of green hydrogen production of US$21 billion annually,” said Prof Dr A Bakar.
“The required capital investment for the first 100MW is heavy, but it could be recovered within five years, as the deployment of Otec technology could generate multiple streams of revenue.”
He lists them as from the production of green hydrogen, and the production of high value marine culture of abalone, seaweed, oyster etc, and that of premium value deep-sea mineral water.
“Production of high value deep sea mineral water, the likes of “Yes” brand of Taiwan, and that of “Mahalo” and “Kona Deep” of Hawaii. As for Sabah, how about ‘Kinabalu Deep’?” he pondered.
Other revenue streams can be generated by the utilisation of the deep-sea water discharge of Otec plant condensers for cooling data centres, seawater air conditioning, cooling of tropical soils for temperate agriculture.
“These estimates, or rather return on investment, would very much improve when other revenue streams, off the Otec plant condensers, would be incorporated in the project viability analysis,” the UTM professor opined, noting that Malaysia has a total Otec potential of at least 26,000MW and states with deep waters should leverage the richness of this natural resource.
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