by NURUL SUHAIDI / pic source: KeTSA FB

THE Energy and Natural Resources Ministry (KeTSA) through the Sustainable Energy Development Authority Malaysia (Seda) today announced the open application for feed-in tariff (FiT) quotas for non-solar energy totalling 187 megawatts (MW) for biogas, mini-hydro and biomass resources.

Its Minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan (picture) said all these quotas include biogas (30MW), biomass (30MW) and mini hydropower (127MW) which open for bidder’s application from Aug 2.

“This is an addition to the approved 1,440MW for all renewable energy (RE) sources since the programme was introduced in 2011 which involved a total of 10,485 projects nationwide,” he said during the media conference in Putrajaya today.

Upon approval, the government expects this new quota to generate investments of RM1.8 billion and create 550 jobs in the RE industry.

“This is in line with the target to ensure the country supplies 31% capacity usage in RE by 2025 and 40% by 2035,” he added.

The approved RE project will soon supply electricity from 2025 to 2027.

Implementation of e-bidding aims to ensure that FiT quotas are approved to qualified bidders and enable fair and competitive access with the lowest tariff being offered among the developers.

“This approach also allows the RE funds to be optimised, thereby enabling more FiT quotas to be offered to RE developer companies in the future,” Takiyuddin added.

From Aug 2 this year, e-bidding for FiT quotas will be available on Seda’s website at www.seda.gov.my.

Separately, he stated that in response to the spike in coal price which has resulted in increased energy rates, the government has provided a two-sen rebate per kilowatt-hour to help domestic users.

“As of now, the rebate is still ongoing, and there is no surcharge for consumers except for commercial and industrial customers,” he added.

Takiyuddin also said the government subsidised RM715 million on that front and hoped the price will stabilise soon.  

It is noted that in October last year, coal prices reached a new high of US$270 (RM1,193) per tonne, and stand at US$203 per tonne as of Jan 10, 2022.