Premier: Bioenergy to enhance Sarawak’s renewable power sources
KUCHING: Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg led a delegation from Sarawak to visit Drax Power Station on Monday to gain insight into the operation of the largest renewable power generation facility in the UK.
In a posting on Sarawak Premier’s official Facebook page ‘Sarawakku’, Abang Johari said Sarawak is working towards adapting bioenergy technologies to enhance its renewable energy generation capability.
He pointed out that the Drax facility, which had successfully transitioned from coal to biomass as a source of energy, serves as a model of sustainable energy practices for Sarawak.
“There are many new things that we can learn here,” he said, noting Drax’s impressive output of approximately 3.9 gigawatts (GW), primarily from wood waste imported from Canada and the US.
He added that most importantly, Sarawak could benefit from understanding the technology used at Drax to convert biomass into energy.
He also drew parallels between the old coal technologies previously used at Drax and the potential adaptations for Sarawak.
“This is an old power plant that now uses biomass instead of coal. We could develop a new, more efficient power plant tailored to the availability of our local resources.”
“We aim to produce renewable energy from the resources we have,” he elaborated.
Owned and operated by Drax Power, a subsidiary of Drax Group, the plant located in Selby generates approximately 18 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity a year, which accounts for six per cent of the UK’s total electricity supply.
The four biomass-fired units of the plant provide 2.6GW, which constitutes approximately 12 per cent of the UK’s total renewable power supply, while the two remaining coal-fired units, capable of generating a total of 1.3GW, are planned to be replaced with two 1.8GW gasfired combined-cycle units by 2025.
Drax is also the second largest producer of sustainable biomass globally.
As Sarawak looks to enhance its renewable energy capabilities, the insights gained from the Drax Power Station provide a valuable framework for developing energy solutions that are both sustainable and suited to the state’s unique geographic and economic landscape.
The potential for utilising local biomass waste for energy aligns with global environmental goals and offers a pathway to energy self-sufficiency for Sarawak.
The visit was also attended by Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, Sarawak State Secretary Datuk Amar Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki, and Deputy Minister for Urban Planning, Land Administration, and Environment Sarawak Datuk Len Talif Salleh.