However, there are benefits that can be achieved, even in the near term, by going green. Better yet, such benefits are not confined to environmental conservation.
For a start, going the RE way can bring in additional foreign direct investments (FDIs) that would not otherwise make its way to our shores, and that translates into technology transfer and more jobs, just for starters.
For instance, going into solar photovoltaic production does yield good returns on investment, former Malaysian Photovoltaic Industry Association secretariat head Lionel Yap told FMT Business.
“Based on an initial cost of RM3 million per megawatt installed, excluding energy storage system cost, a single hyperscale data centre running on a 600MW capacity can generate RM1.8 billion in project value income for the local PV industry,” he said.
Over and above that, Yap said, the industry has the potential to offer high-paying installation jobs to many skilled workers.
“These workers will have better opportunities to move up the ladder compared with their counterparts in jobs such as food delivery. This will help us achieve the status as a high-income nation,” he added.
On the bright side, Gading Kencana Sdn Bhd founder Guntor Tobeng noted, the government has been responsive to industry feedback on RE.
For instance, he told FMT Business, when the 300mw quota allocated under the net offset virtual aggregations (Nova) programme for the installation of solar photovoltaic facilities was fully taken up within three months of its launch on April 1, last year, the government topped it up with another 300mw.
Meanwhile, CMS Waste Management Sdn Bhd managing director Ronnie CW Tan pointed out that turning oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) biomass into pellets for power generation not only helps the industry clean up its waste, but it also brings additional income to the plantation.
Tan said that one can easily make RM80 to RM100 from each tonne of pellets produced from EFB biomass.
“A RM20 million investment in a plant can yield 10,000 tonnes of pellets from 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes of EFB per month,” he told FMT Business.
Given the fact that Malaysia produces 25 million tonnes of EFB per year, this was a business opportunity, he said.
Some of that biomass, he said, is already being used for producing paper, fibre particle board, compost, fibre mat for soil holding and as fuel.
Centre for Environment, Technology and Development, Malaysia (Cetdem) chairman Gurmit Singh said that there are health benefits from turning to renewable energy use.
When the population keeps using coal and petroleum, pollutant emissions will still occur and are expected to keep going up, he said.
Coal, which is still largely being used to generate electricity, releases sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which contribute to respiratory illnesses. “The pollutants are similar to haze,” Gurmit told FMT Business.
He noted that while lead may have been removed from petrol, car emissions continue to produce other pollutants. On the other hand, he said, electric cars are not a solution to the current problem.
“We need to increase usage of public transport. I am not in favour of switching to electric cars but electric buses, yes. With more people using public transport, there will be fewer cars on the road,” he pointed out.
Apart from the environmental setback, Gurmit also sees other problems associated with having more vehicles on the road.
It leads to traffic jams, loss of time due to travel, increased risks of accidents and added stress, he added.