PENANG has empowered its state agencies to go big on renewable energy, especially solar power.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said that the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP) is looking to install a floating solar farm at parts of the Mengkuang Dam.
He said the plan was subject to approval from regulating agencies like the Environment Department to ensure it meets the requirements of any environmental impact assessment (EIA).
This would enable sustainable power generation for PBAPP’s services to the ratepayers, said Chow after opening the Malaysian Photovoltaic Industry Association (MPIA) solar roadshow at a hotel.
As Penang is an industrial hub, Chow underscored the importance of devoting significant resources towards renewal energy as it was also an incentive to lure investors.
Due to an acute shortage of land, Chow said that solar power generation can only be done on rooftops, which was evident for some households and factories here.
“There is of course room for improvement, but Penang is serious about renewable energy until the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) has set up a subsidiary to specialise in such fields,” said Chow.
He noted that the adoption rate for renewable energy in areas such as solar and wind as well as hydro, is about 30% to 40% in the energy mix components in Penang.
In a related development, consumer advocate Datuk K. Koris Atan has supported offering new subsidies for electricity due to the present heatwave that has engulfed the state and the northern region for the past five months.
“The oven-like environment means consumers are now purchasing air conditioners to withstand the sweltering heat, hence their power bills will naturally go up,” he said. – May 14, 2024.
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