Malaysia plans to develop South-east Asia’s largest solar hybrid facility while pursuing hydrogen plants to achieve its 70 per cent goal of renewable-energy capacity by 2050, said Minister of Economic Affairs Rafizi Ramli.

Sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional will lead the development of the solar hybrid plant, and that it has attracted global investments totalling RM6 billion (S$1.75 billion), said Rafizi.

The plant is among 10 projects worth RM25 billion that the minister unveiled on Thursday (Jul 27) under the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR). 

“NETR is this administration’s effort to change the economics of renewable energy so that we (can) rapidly scale up our installed capacity with the right infrastructure and technology,” said Rafizi in Kuala Lumpur.

Tenaga Nasional, Sime Darby Property, Malakoff and Petronas will also be part of the programme, according to the government. 

In May, Malaysia raised the renewable-energy target to 70 per cent of the total generation capacity by 2050, from 40 per cent. The target requires RM637 billion in investments. The country’s renewable-energy capacity stood at 25 per cent as at the end of March 2023, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority.

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It recently lifted an export ban on renewable energy, as it aims to position itself as a regional leader in the space. The move allows local companies to develop capacity at scale and fulfil regional demands. 

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim previously called for more funding for the developing world, in order to help countries achieve their green goals. BLOOMBERG