Federal govt allocates RM1.8 bln for power projects
KOTA KINABALU: The Federal government has agreed to allocate RM1.812 billion in grants to implement critical electric power transmission projects in the state.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said the projects include the Southern Transmission Link and others for the 2014-2016 period to complete the transmission network in Sabah and to enable state-owned power producer Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) to import power from Sarawak in the future.
Musa, who is also state Finance Minister, said the government has also allocated RM230.6 million for the 2013-2014 period to finance projects aimed at improving the System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) throughout Sabah.
“Therefore, assistance is still needed from the Federal government to help SESB carry out new infrastructure projects including the Southern Link
Therefore, assistance is still needed from the Federal government to help SESB carry out new infrastructure projects including the Southern Link Transmission Line.
Datuk Seri Musa Aman, Sabah Chief Minister
Transmission Line,” he said in his keynote address at the Seminar on Sustainable Green Energy for a Greener Sabah organised by the Institute for Development Studies ( Sabah) here yesterday.
The speech was read by Sabah Industrial Development Assistant Minister Datuk Bolkiah Ismail.
Musa also said the recent upgrade of transmission grids linking Kota Kinabalu and Kudat and the eastern Sabah grid has helped alleviate the transmission issue.
In addition, he said, a number of power plants will be coming on- stream, and the policy of diversifying away from diesel plants will assist the overall electricity supply.
“The completion of the Kimanis and SPR Energy power projects for example are expected to stabilise power generation.
Both are gas-fired combinedcycle power plants, a more efficient and cleaner solution compared to Medium Fuel Oil (MFO) and diesel-based power generation methods.
“The Kimanis and SPR power projects are expected to generate a total of 385 Megawatts, further increasing the state’s total generating capacity to about 1,400 Megawatts,” he said.
Musa added he hoped to see more contribution from the private sector in this industry in view of the state’s abundant natural resources that can be turned into renewable energy. — Bernama