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By Karen Bong and Wilfred Pilo
KUCHING, Aug 4: The success of microalgae cultivation in Sarawak has led to the State government’s decision to upscale its cultivation involving 1,000 acres in Bintulu, which has the potential to produce 10,000 barrels of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) per day.
Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said micro-algae cultivation was experimented in other states in Malaysia, but somehow, it was unsuccessful.
“Why (is it) microalgae can be cultivated in Sarawak but not in other places? Petronas tried in Melaka but was not successful. When I saw this in Bangi, I suggested that Petronas trialled this in Sarawak instead.
“We were successful in the end, and the SAF (produced by microalgae) had been trialled in a historical inaugural flight using Airbus 220 from Kuching to Pulau Langkawi.
“Now we want to upscale the cultivation in Bintulu with 1,000 acres with a potential of 10,000 barrels per day,” said Abang Johari at the inauguration of Tun Abang Haji Openg Digital Centre in University Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) today.
He said microalgae cultivation has been “the result of data” where each stage of its growth, quality, and production of SAF are all monitored through data analysis.
“This means a lot of research is needed to develop biofuel (SAF) as one of the by-products,” said Abang Johari.
Data analysts who know coding and decoding, he said, are thus essential not only in determining trends by using statistics but also for cybersecurity to insulate available data.
He said data collection may also be used to boost the agriculture sector in Sarawak, especially in matching crops with soil types.
“Now I want to trial cultivating a new species of coconut from Vietnam in Kampung Semangat, a hybrid species which can be mass-produced,” said Abang Johari, who has entrusted the research project to Unimas.
Apart from data collection and analysis, he said Sarawak also needs specialists in robotics as Sarawak plans to adopt robotics in the healthcare sector, including robotic surgery.
“I hope this digital centre will produce better and more advanced technologies as well as specialised human capital now that Sarawak has embarked towards the new economy and become a prosperous and progressive region,” said Abang Johari in reference to Tun Abang Haji Openg Digital Centre which he officiated. — DayakDaily
