By Ashley Sim
KUCHING, June 9: Sarawak is actually carbon negative, according to a study conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) through the UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions (PACT), says Sarawak Economic Planning Unit (EPU) director Datu Dr Muhammad Abdullah Zaidel.
He made the remarks during a panel discussion on ‘Opportunities in the Domestic Industry and Energy Value Chains’ at a local hotel here today as part of the Sarawak-Korea Energy Business Forum 2022 themed ‘Accelerating the Sarawak-Korea Strategic Energy Partnership’.
“To put it another way, we are breathing more oxygen than the carbon dioxide that is emitted.
“So we are fortunate here in Sarawak, and we obviously have Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) that has been very foresighted in exploring hydro dams and renewable energy for Sarawak for our daily lives,” he said.
Zaidel went on to say that the biggest challenge would be getting regular people to understand, buy-in, and embrace the concept of a green, sustainable environment.
“We noticed in our last visit to Rotterdam that the Europeans are investing in the green economy in the billions of dollars, which is beyond our imagination given that our people here are still skeptical of hydrogen, which means a green economy.
“And the main challenge, from the perspective of a regular person, is understanding and embracing this idea of a green economy, and I remember when this idea was mooted by the Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg in his earlier days as Sarawak’s Chief Minister in 2017, nobody believed or could imagine the vision that he’s looking at which is the importance of hydrogen economy.
“For example, when he introduced it in 2018, I recall one of the tasks that was assigned to me to explore the hydrogen economy, and SEB was one of the first choices to implement the idea of the hydrogen economy,” he explained.
Furthermore, Zaidel asserted Sarawak’s future in renewable energy or green economy is very promising.
Also present during the panel discussion were Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) general manager Abdul Hadi Datuk Abdul Kadir, Deputy Minister for Energy and Environmental Sustainability Dr Hazland Abang Hipni, SEB Group chief executive officer (CEO) Datu Sharbini Suhaili, SEDC Energy Sdn Bhd CEO Robert Hardin, Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) senior vice president of Corporate Strategy Abang Arabi Abang Narudin, and Korea Energy Economics Institute (KEEI) Research Planning and Coordination director Dr Lee Ho-Mu. — DayakDaily
