By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Nov 27: Sarawak’s undersea cable project to export electricity to Singapore will span 720km from Tondong, Sarawak to Changi, Singapore through Indonesia’s Muri-Midai corridor.
Minister of Utility and Telecommunication Sarawak Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi said this when referring to the agreement between the Sarawak and Singapore governments on the supply of power with a cap of 1,000 megawatts (MW) by 2032.
“The agreement related to the Muri-Midai corridor was signed by Malaysia and Indonesia in 1983.
“It is estimated that 80 per cent of the cable will cross the Muri-Midai corridor, Indonesia while the remaining 20 per cent will pass through the waters of Malaysia and Singapore.
“This cable project will be underwritten by Singapore,” he said when presenting his ministerial winding-up speech in the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting here today.
Julaihi further mentioned that apart from Singapore, Sarawak has exported electricity to West Kalimantan with a nominated peak capacity of up to 230MW under Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) since 2016.
In addition, an electricity sales agreement with Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) was signed in August 2021 to supply 30MW of electricity to Sabah.
He also stated that the amount of electricity exported to date is only an average of 2 per cent of the 5,745MW.
“Taking into account exports to Sabah and Singapore, by 2032 this percentage will increase by an average of 12 per cent which is 1,130MW from the estimated generation capacity of 9,529 MW.
“This means that by the year 2032, based on projections, we still have enough electricity of 8,399 MW (88 per cent) for local use and needs in Sarawak, including reserve margin in the range of 22 per cent to 25 per cent.
“With the export of this excess electricity, Sarawak has the opportunity to increase its income to empower development efforts including utility infrastructure in line with Sarawak’s aspirations to develop by 2030 and make Sarawak a renewable energy hub in the ASEAN region.
“In line with PCDS 2030, it is targeted that a total of 15 per cent of Sarawak’s electricity sector income is obtained from the international market through renewable energy,” he added. — DayakDaily
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