By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Oct 23: The Sarawak government and the federal government are currently working out an arrangement on how levies collected from carbon trading will be shared between both parties, says Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.
He said the levy mechanism is being finalised as part of the ongoing coordination between the State and federal authorities on managing carbon trading registration and compliance with United Nations (UN) reporting requirements.
“As a sovereign country, Malaysia has to register with the UN. But that one will be arrangement between the federal and the State.
“As you know, they may want to charge levy and therefore levy must be shared between federal and State. This is being worked out,” he said when speaking at the 11th International Conference on Low Carbon Asia (ICLCA) 2025 held at Hikmah Exchange Event Centre (HEEC) here today.
Earlier, Abang Johari said Sarawak remains a carbon-negative State and still has areas suitable for carbon storage under the Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) mechanism, including depleted oil wells along its shoreline.
He further said that Sarawak is working with the World Bank and Verified Carbon Standard (Verra) to establish proper valuation for carbon pricing while exploring trading opportunities with countries such as South Korea and Japan.
“Now the world says whoever pollutes the space, the atmosphere, they have to pay under what we call United Nations Framework Convention on Carbon.
“However, there is no formula yet but we are working together with the World Bank and Verra to calculate the right price for carbon,” he added.
Abang Johari also shared that he had been briefed on a new technology from Finland which can value carbon absorption through a specific area.
“If the market really can accept that formula and the world verifies and certifies that formula, the native customary right (NCR) landowners can exercise their trading discipline in terms of carbon storage. And I hope Finland and the Sarawak Forest Department will be able to calculate that,” he elaborated.
Held from Oct 22 to 25, the ICLCA 2025 was jointly organised by the Institute of Sustainable and Renewable Energy (ISuRE), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), and the UTM Low Carbon Asia Research Centre, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), with support from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Urban Development (MUDeNR), Ministry of Energy and Environmental Sustainability (MEESty), and Business Events Sarawak (BESarawak).
Carrying the theme “Innovative Pathways to Scalable Low-Carbon Solutions for Sustainable Development,” the conference brought together 503 participants from 20 countries, including researchers, industry leaders and policymakers.
Discussions centred on low-carbon innovation, circular economy, sustainable production, biodiversity and nature-based approaches, as well as climate justice and inclusive transitions.
Also present were UNIMAS Board of Directors chairman Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Sulong Matjeraie; Ministry of Natural Resources and Urban Development (MUDeNR) permanent secretary Datu Abdullah Julaihi; UNIMAS vice chancellor Prof Dr Ahmad Hata Rasit; and UTM Low Carbon Asia Research Centre director Prof Dr Ho Chin Siong. — DayakDaily
