Lift renewable energy export ban to spur industry, govt told
Putrajaya has been urged to lift its renewable energy export ban to allow Malaysian companies to sell energy to Singapore and thus spur the industry.
In a statement today, Bakri MP Yeo Bee Yin said the previous Pakatan Harapan federal administration proactively engaged Singapore on the potential export of renewable energy.
However, this came to a halt after the subsequent administration under then prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin decided in October 2021 to ban renewable energy exports.
This, said Yeo, a former cabinet minister in charge of energy, technology, and the environment, caused Malaysian firms to be ineligible for the first round of request for proposals (RFP) under Singapore’s Energy Market Authority (EMA) on Nov 12, 2021.
However, Yeo said Malaysian firms may still qualify for the second RFP if the ban is lifted.
"I call upon the government to reverse the decision to ban renewable energy export so that Malaysia-based renewable energy players can also participate in the second RFP.
"Upon winning the bid, renewable energy players, either foreign or local, will build renewable energy plants in Malaysia and export the electricity to Singapore.
"This will lead to greater green investment in Malaysia and generating more green jobs, such as engineers, technicians, and analysts, among others," she said.
The renewable energy field, she said, would also attract foreign investments.
"I hope (the government) realises that there is one very low hanging fruit, lying at our doorstep, waiting to be picked," she said.
Yeo said she demanded answers through Parliament on the reasons for the ban only to learn that Putrajaya believed renewable energy exports would hinder Malaysia's attempt to fulfil carbon reduction targets in the Paris Agreement.
She believed this argument was flawed because Malaysia could potentially produce 275GW of renewable energy - eight times the current installed power generation capacity.
This, she explained, meant that Malaysia would be able to fulfil its commitments to the Paris Agreement while exporting a considerable amount of renewable energy at the same time.
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