New Straits Times 19 Jan 10;
MALAYSIA is mulling the building of its first carbon-neutral city as one of the projects to be undertaken by a joint venture between Abu Dhabi's Masdar and 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
Masdar, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Development Company, and 1MDB signed a cooperation agreement in Abu Dhabi on Sunday to jointly explore clean technology projects and investments.
Both companies will also cooperate and invest in carbon reduction projects and clean technology venture capital.
If fully implemented, the cooperation agreement will lead to the development of new catalytic projects worth about US$100 million (RM338 million).
The agreement was signed by Masdar chief executive officer Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber and his 1MDB counterpart, Shahrol Halmi, and witnessed by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Gen Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Najib is here on an official visit and to attend the World Future Energy Summit where he delivered a keynote address.
"We value this partnership with Malaysia and applaud its move to actively pursue and invest in new green technologies," Sultan Ahmed said.
Incorporated in 2006, Masdar is a company focusing on renewable energy and sustainability.
"It is our intention to explore business opportunities relating to the development of an environmentally friendly carbon-neutral city in Malaysia," Shahrol said.
1MDB is a strategic development company owned by the Malaysian government. It serves as a catalyst for long-term sustainable economic development through a new economic model based on innovation, creativity and high-value creation.
It has a planned initial funding of RM11 billion and the first tranche of RM5 billion was raised through the issuance of Islamic bonds guaranteed by the government.
The agreement came close after 1MDB set up a joint US$2.5 billion investment fund with Saudi Arabia's PetroSaudi, which would also target renewable energy sources and long-term sustainable economic development projects in Malaysia and abroad.
Najib arrived in Abu Dhabi late on Saturday in his Middle East swing that also included an official visit to Saudi Arabia. He is scheduled to visit India, on his way home.
Earlier, Najib visited several key projects undertaken by Malaysian companies in Abu Dhabi, including the Sheikh Zayed Sport City development being built by a joint venture company involving Malaysia's Sunway Group.
He toured the almost-completed Yas Island Formula One race track which was built by a joint venture involving Bahrain-based Cebarco and Malaysia's WCT Engineering Bhd.
He also toured the Al Reem mixed-development project undertaken by a consortium of four Malaysian companies comprising IJM Bhd, Sunway Construction Sdn Bhd, Zelan Holdings Bhd and LFE Engineering Sdn Bhd.
Malaysia to depend less on fossil fuel, says Najib
New Straits Times 19 Jan 10;
MALAYSIA is mapping out a plan to reduce its dependence on fossil fuel, by such methods as increasing usage of energy from renewable resources to 2,000 MW by 2020 from 50 MW now.
The plan, which forms part of Malaysia's role in the global effort to cut carbon emission and improve global energy security, was highlighted by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in a keynote address at the World Future Energy Summit which started in Abu Dhabi yesterday.
Najib's address, which painted a gloomy picture if the world continued to ignore the negative impact excessive carbon emission was having on global climate change, could not have come at a better time since the world had been experiencing some of the most extreme weather patterns ever recorded.
The northern hemisphere is facing one of its harshest winters in history.
He said Malaysia had introduced several incentives to promote renewable energy, including the Small Renewable Energy Programme which provided for a higher purchasing price for electricity generated through renewable energy resources by the grid operator.
"We are in the process of instituting a renewable energy law and one of the mechanisms we are looking into is feed-in tariffs to promote usage of this type of energy."
Feed-in tariffs is a mechanism which guarantees that energy generated through renewable resources is purchased by the national grid operator. It has worked successfully in Europe and is being practised in more than 60 countries.
He also spoke of Malaysia's plan to increase the use of solar power through the "Suria 1000 Programme".
Reminding the developing economies to make their energy industries more efficient amid increasing energy prices and harmful emissions, Najib said Malaysia had commissioned a study to restructure and realign its energy sector.
Malaysia established the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry early last year, essentially to transform the country into a green nation.
"We will be looking at four main sectors to implement green technologies, namely energy, transport, buildings and water."
To benefit from a green economy while reducing carbon footprint, Malaysia has launched the National Biotechnology Policy and the National Biofuel Policy in 2005. The policies seek to leverage on the natural strengths of Malaysia where at least 50 per cent of land area remains forested.
"Our embracing of green technology is not only to conserve our resources, but also to act as a new economic impetus for Malaysia."
He said the international community failed to seize the opportunity at the last summit on climate change in Copenhagen as they did not manage to face the issue decisively.
Najib, here on a working visit, was scheduled to visit Dubai, an emirate in the United Arab Emirates. He was scheduled to meet UAE Vice-President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al-Maktoum and tour the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.
