The financing will be provided by BPMB, Maybank Islamic and UOBM via a fresh commodity murabahah term financing-i facility

By ASILA JALIL / Pic By RAZAK GHAZALI

PULAU Indah Power Plant Sdn Bhd (PIPP) has secured financing of up to RM2.7 billion for the development of its 1,200 megawatts (MW) combined-cycle gas turbine power plant project from three financial institutions.

The financing for the power plant will be provided by Bank Pembangunan Malaysia Bhd (BPMB), Maybank Islamic Bhd and United Overseas Bank (M) Bhd (UOBM) via a fresh commodity murabahah term financing-i facility.

The deal is for the financing, design, engineering, procurement, construction, installation, testing, commissioning, ownership, operation and maintenance of the power plant in Pulau Indah, Selangor, by PIPP.

Worldwide Holdings Bhd is the majority shareholder in PIPP with a 75% stake, while the remaining 25% is owned by Korea Electric Power Corp.

Worldwide Holdings and PIPP chairman Datuk Nor Azmie Diron said the power plant is expected to operate with a net efficiency of more than 62%, higher than its coal or oil equivalent.

The project will enter its construction phase in the second half of the year.

“Once it is commissioned in January 2024, the power plant is expected to support the increasing power demand in the Klang Valley and boost the baseload supply for the region.

“The power plant will generate low carbon energy to the central region of Peninsular Malaysia, which includes the Klang, Sepang and Kuala Langat districts which have a high demand for electricity,” he said at the financing facility signing ceremony in Shah Alam yesterday.

Also present at the event was Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari and South Korea ambassador to Malaysia Lee Chi-beom.

Nor Azmie said the project will have the world’s most innovative advanced materials, cooling, aerodynamics, combustion and digital capability that will lessen the impact to the environment.

Amirudin said the project is in line with the national development agenda while supporting Malaysia’s aspiration to reduce CO2 emission by 45% by 2030.

“This project is also in line with the ‘Smart Selangor Blueprint’, the roadmap towards a more sustainable economic growth in Selangor, by enabling and supporting the state’s socioeconomic ecosystem.

“With this project, we look forward to realising Selangor’s smart state aspirations by 2025,” Amirudin said.

The power plant, which costs a total of RM3.3 billion, is situated in Klang, Selangor, and spans across 60 acres (24ha) of reclaimed land adjacent to the Port Klang Free Zone that lies on the northern bank of Selat Lumut.

PIPP received a letter of award from the Energy Commission on Sept 10, 2019, to undertake the project. On Aug 7, 2020, it signed the power purchase agreement with Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB), whereby the sale of the power plant’s entire daily available capacity and net electrical output to TNB will be contracted for a period of 21 years from the commercial operation date of the first generating block.

Worldwide Holdings CEO Datin Paduka Norazlina Zakaria said the group’s future activities will primarily revolve around energy and waste management.

She said the group is looking to start its waste-to-energy plant this year which will be able to produce another 90MW in addition to 1,200 MW from the power plant in Pulau Indah.

“We have completed everything and the next stage is to sign a renewable energy (RE) purchase agreement with TNB. There are three phases for this project and we aim to begin the first phase as soon as possible,” she said, adding that all three phases of the project must be completed by the end of 2025.

By 2024, the RE sector is expected to contribute up to 40% to the group’s earnings, while its property and other environment services will each contribute about 30% of earnings.