Malaysia lifts export ban on renewable energy

The government of Malaysia has lifted the ban on the export of renewable energy (RE). Economy Minister Mohd Rafizi Ramli made the announcement and said the decision is part of a policy review aimed at addressing bottlenecks in the energy sector and promoting private sector participation.

The government plans to establish an electricity exchange system to facilitate cross-border sales of RE. The Cabinet also decided to increase the target for Malaysia’s RE capacity to 70% by 2050, up from the previous target of 40%.

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Corporate Green Power Programme (CGPP)

Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, the spokesperson for the government, stated that along with lifting the export ban, certain regulations would be put in place. The government aims to position Malaysia as a regional hub for RE generation, and there are discussions about the possibility of an Asean Power Grid to optimize electricity sales across ASEAN countries.

The government has introduced various RE-related programs, including the Corporate Green Power Programme (CGPP), which encourages collaboration between solar power producers and commercial power users to create new RE capacity. The government has also used a reverse-bidding mechanism for solar plant installations.

As part of its commitment to RE, the government plans to allocate US $11M to install solar panels in government buildings during the second half of this year. Additional funding is expected to be allocated for future development expenditures.

It is worth noting that only a portion of the allocated capacity under the current Net Energy Metering (NEM) program has been utilized for government buildings. To increase uptake, Minister Nik Nazmi introduced an additional quota of 630MW for the CGPP and NEM programs in March.

Overall, these policy changes and initiatives demonstrate Malaysia’s efforts to promote RE, encourage private sector participation, and position itself as a regional leader in renewable energy generation.