The launch of the Sabah and Sarawak Biomass Industry Development Plan is set to place Sabah and Sarawak at the forefront of the high-value biomass industry I the country and help to drive the strategy to position Malaysia as the Premier Biomass Processing Hub in South East Asia.
Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM), the Ministry of Industrial Development Sabah and the Sarawak State Planning Unit (SPU) developed the plan that was launched today, by the Prime Minister at Perdana Putra, Putrajaya.
Chief Minister of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem in his speech read by Assistant Chief Minister in the Chief Minister’s office Datu Haji Len Thalif Salleh said Sarawak started its collaboration with AIM in 2015 to gather an in depth understanding of the potential and opportunity for Sarawak inn this sector.
In his speech, the Chief Minister said the feasibility study led by a Steering Committee made up of relevant State Government representatives by SPU, “helped us gauge the real biomass volumes available, the cost and eventually the mix of potential sustainable downstream activities to ensure that there will be a benefit to the people of the State and to ensure the industry will have a positive social and economic impact.”
Tan Sri Adenan said Sarawak, “will integrate biomass as a new promoted industry under the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) guided by a detailed roadmap and an action plan that will be implemented by a Federal – State Taskforce led by SPU and facilitated by AIM.”
He added that Sarawak can host 10 biofuel or biochemical plants in various stage added of the process, utilising 6 out of the 19 million dry tonnes of biomass in four (4) specific clusters of Bintulu, Miri, Tanjung Manis and Kuching in the next 10 to 15 years.
The launching ceremony was officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Also present were International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Mah Siew Keong, Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Raymond Tan Shu Kiah representing Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman, and Assistant Minister in the Sarawak Chief Minister’s Office Datuk Len Talif Salleh representing Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem.