Tax spotlight on green building materials

PETALING JAYA: The Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry will look at ways to reduce the costs of green building materials in order to encourage the use of such materials in property and public infrastructure development.

“We can consider this. I will definitely look seriously at this.

“For example, the import duties on such materials,” said Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui after he witnessed the signing of a memorandum of agreement between property developer Ken Holdings Bhd and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) to undertake collaborative research and develop green technology in housing construction.

Chin reiterated that the Government already provided tax deduction incentives for building developers concerning the additional costs of achieving accreditation as being environmentfriendly by rating tools such as Malaysia’s Green Building Index (GBI).

Meanwhile, the ministry is aiming to promote the implementation of green projects this year, under the Government’s Low Carbon Cities Framework (LCCF), by the authorities in five locations, namely Miri (Sarawak), Pulau Sah Besar (Kenyir Lake, Terengganu), Universiti Malaya, Port Dickson (Negri Sembilan) and Hang Tuah Jaya (Ayer Keroh, Malacca).

Chin said this was among the Ministry’s KPIS (key performance indicators) this year.

Chin also pointed out that there were efforts to implement the use of green technology in Government buildings.

“Many government buildings are old, and were not designed to comply with GBI. We are trying to implement and retrofit (green elements) and eventually, we may be able to call Putrajaya and Cyberjaya green communities.

“We have discussed this with Putrajaya Holdings Sdn Bhd and Sepang Municipal council,” he said.

Chin said the Works Ministry was spearheading efforts concerning green government buildings, and had proposed minimum standards for certification.

He also said the ministry was compiling details on energy usage by the various ministries, and would submit a report to the Cabinet at the “appropriate time.”

Also, according to the Ministry, about Rm607mil under the Green Technology Financing Scheme has been approved for 36 projects since the scheme started in January 2010.