KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is proactive in addressing sustainability issues in the energy-intensive data centre industry, said Deputy Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir.
He pointed to measures such as the Large Scale Solar Project (LSS Project) and Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS) that should address concerns about the sustainability of data centres in Malaysia.
Akmal said the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry is ensuring that all incoming investments, particularly in data centres, adhere to the sustainability commitments.
“Investors entering the country, including data centres, must meet the demands or responsibilities of sustainable development goals or ESG commitments. Still, we must also ensure these commitments are met at the implementation level, not just in policy,” he told reporters after delivering his speech at the Accelerating Sustainable Business Action event today.
Akmal said the government places importance on sustainability, noting the launch of the National Energy Transition Roadmap last year attracted investors.
“The government under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has launched the National Energy Transition Roadmap, which outlines several initiatives towards renewable energy. At the federal level, under Petra (Energy Transition and Water Transformation Ministry), we welcome and follow up on these initiatives by enhancing policies and regulation.”
To facilitate investments, he added, Malaysia needs to make the process of renewable energy agreements easier while ensuring the stability of the existing energy system.
Akmal highlighted the recently completed application process for the fifth LSS project. “The application has closed, and now we are in the process of evaluating which applicants will qualify competitively to open new solar farms.”
At the same time, he said, about two weeks ago, the government announced the establishment of CRESS, which is intended to increase corporate consumers’ access to green electricity by allowing them the opportunity to procure green electricity supply directly from a renewable energy power producer.
“CRESS allows arrangements for companies seeking renewable energy to enter agreements with solar energy providers, where they generate renewable energy and only need to pay a charge to the grid system,” he added.
