by NURUL SUHAIDI / pic credit: TNB

TENAGA Nasional Bhd (TNB) has entered into a strategic partnership with SP Setia Bhd to provide smart energy and clean energy infrastructure at SP Setia’s housing projects as well as cultivate a greener lifestyle among Malaysian households.

The partnership will equip SP Setia’s properties and developments with solar, battery and electric vehicle (EV) infrastructures that support both residential and commercial units.

The plan combines three key aspects — solar ready which is providing natural energy to reduce the electricity consumption with savings passed onto the consumer, battery ready as it stores energy solar generation to serve the needs of the household and township, and EV ready in which TNB will build charging infrastructure to support green mobility choices.

SP Setia president and CEO Datuk Choong Kai Wai said the collaboration with the power utility will help propel Malaysia toward its pledge of achieving carbon neutrality by the year 2050.

“Sustainability is our collective responsibility. We embrace our duty to adopt, adapt and uphold the environmental agenda in meaningful ways that transfer savings, ease of living and innovative lifestyles to our customers through this development,” he said.

He added that the strategic collaboration will optimise electricity costs for future home buyers and is a step forward to heighten the awareness on environmental living.

“We aim to set a new benchmark for Malaysia to cultivate a green lifestyle across the country,” he said during the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing at Le Meridien Putrajaya yesterday.

He added that the installation will only have a very minimal impact on its property prices.

“We plan to launch RM4 billions in gross development value this year, and it is our intention to equip part, if not all, of these new green solutions,” Choong said.

TNB president and CEO Datuk Baharin Din said the MoU is set to expand TNB’s role in promoting low carbon mobility, increasing the use of EVs in Malaysia and also potentially open up opportunities for TNB to expand its regulated and unregulated business.

“Through this partnership, we offer SP Setia customers the option to leverage on the solution once it is commercially available upon the end of the Net Energy Metering quota.

“We will also be involved at the early stage of the property development to provide smart energy solutions to SP Setia,” Baharin said.

The premises will be designed to support the installation of EV chargers if the owners decide to install them later.

TNB aims to leverage on SP Setia’s 41 active projects and propose relevant and precise products according to the developer’s needs.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said the government is hoping other companies and organisations would emulate TNB and SP Setia in prospering the rakyat by creating residential areas of better environmental quality with green and sustainable energy sources.

“This is the first project in the country with a large-scale deployment that integrates all three aspects and it will help to grow the solar panel sector in the country,” he said during his speech.

Mustapa added that such initiatives are becoming increasingly significant, given organisations, financial institutions and the capital market use environmental, social and governance principles to influence their investment or production decisions.