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India will prioritise cooperation with Malaysia in the digital economy sector, placing it at the core of bilateral engagement in moving forward, says Indian High Commisioner to Malaysia, B.N.Reddy.

He said this will be achieved by establishing the Malaysia-India Digital Council and operationalising the Malaysia-India Startup Bridge.

Expressing confidence in the evolving relations between the “New India” and “Madani Malaysia,” Reddy emphasised that these ties would gain increased relevance and significance.

“Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced New India’s determination to become a developed country by 2047, a year India will be celebrating the 100th year of independence.

“Malaysia will become an important partner in our journey as India becomes a developed country,” he said in his speech during the reception on the 75th anniversary of India’s Republic Day here last night, which was graced by Second Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, and members of the diplomatic corps.

Reddy underscored that the India-Malaysia relationship is rooted not only in shared interests but also in deep values, democracy, rule of law, and a preference for a rule-based international order.

He described it as a natural and innovative partnership, foreseeing 2024 as a promising year for deepening bilateral ties, especially under the stable government led by Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Highlighting the frequent high-level engagements between the two countries, Reddy mentioned that 12 ministerial and deputy ministerial visits had taken place since December 2022, including a joint commission meeting in New Delhi in November last year.

He also emphasised the significant role played by the 2.7 million people of Indian origin in Malaysia, considering them a living bridge for mutual engagement.

The diplomat acknowledged the substantial contribution of Indian expats, around 15,000 in number, to the Malaysian economy, highlighting that this year, the Bharat Club, a society formed by Indian expats, is celebrating its 50th year of establishment.

Reddy also mentioned the presence of about 115,000 Indian workers employed in Malaysia. During his speech, Reddy shared positive statistics about India’s progress, noting that 250 million people in India have come out from multidimensional poverty in the last nine years.

He highlighted the deep roots of the digital economy in India, with unprecedented digital transformation in play, while stressing that India has produced 111 unicorns and boasts the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem, with 120,000 startups developed in seven years.

The current India-Malaysia bilateral trade stands at US$20 billion, with plans to expand to US$25 billion by 2025. Additionally, with approximately 200 flights per week to 11 destinations in India and visa-free travel for Indian nationals, India is emerging as the fastest-growing source country for tourists in Malaysia.

“Tourist numbers from India touched almost half a million during the first nine months of 2023, marking an 88 per cent increase compared to 2022,” said Reddy.

Source: Bernama

India places digital economy at the core of bilateral engagement with Malaysia

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Malaysia’s semiconductor export is set to reap the benefits from higher global demand, said Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz.

Malaysia is seeing the benefits coming from the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector, especially from the chips and semiconductor sector, and the nation’s policy on “active neutrality” between the United States (US) and China is very important as Malaysian companies are looking for supply chain resiliency, he said.

“Malaysia has been in this sector for a while now, in the last 50 years, and in terms of global market share of the semiconductor testing sector, we are about 12% to 13%, and we are the sixth largest exporter of semiconductors.

“The E&E sector is so big in Malaysia that 40% of our exports are actually from the E&E sector,” Tengku Zafrul said in an interview with CNN on Tuesday.

There were increased investments into Malaysia and the Southeast Asian region last year against “tough global economic outlook”, he added.

“In 2022, the total FDI (foreign direct investment ) that flowed into Asean increased 5% and if you look at what is happening in the world, the global FDI is down by 12%. But, Malaysia’s investments for the first nine months (of 2023) was a record high in the last decade. That shows that there is opportunity against the tough backdrop of the global economic outlook,” Tengku Zafrul said.

Malaysia attracted RM225 billion of approved investments in the first nine months of last year, exceeding its full-year target for 2023, with FDI accounting for 55.9% of the total.

Tengku Zafrul said the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) is looking to diversify trade with other countries and regions while also increasing intra-trade within the Asean region, which currently stands at 20%.

“It is something we, as Trade Ministers, in the region are working closely to make sure to increase this number. One of the things that we are looking into is to complete an agreement called the Digital Economic Framework Agreement by 2025 because electronic trade will definitely increase within the region,” he added.

He noted that there was a significant upside of potentials coming from intra-trade within Asean due to its young population aged below 30 years, comprising 50% of the total population of 680 million.

Meanwhile, the government is cautiously optimistic of Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) to be at 4% to 5% in 2024 and expects the country’s economic growth to be around 4% as well.

“There will be some negative impact from what is happening globally and that is why we are a bit conservative with our GDP forecast of around 4% to 5%. Malaysia is a trading and open economy whereby trade to GDP is 160%.

“We will be watching these (global economic events) closely and we hope the situation will not escalate and have an impact on the region and on Malaysia as well,” Tengku Zafrul said.

On whether the liquidation risk of China’s Evergrande Group could potentially pose a headwind for Malaysia, Tengku Zafrul stressed on the importance of insulating an economy like Malaysia.

“China remains an important trading partner to the Asean region, and to Malaysia as it is the largest, if not the largest to many countries here. And growth in China is going to have an impact on the growth in this region. We all know what is happening in the property sector in China and (that may) possibly impact the whole economy of China.

“We will watch it closely but as I said, insulating an economy like Malaysia is important as China and the US (constitute) 45% of the total GDP. So, these two economic powers are going to influence (the economy of) Southeast Asia, especially Malaysia,” he added.

A Hong Kong court on Monday ordered the liquidation of property giant China Evergrande Group, a move likely to send ripples through China’s crumbling financial markets as policymakers scramble to contain a deepening crisis.

Source: Bernama

Higher global demand to boost Malaysia’s semiconductor exports — Tengku Zafrul

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The slew of renewable energy (RE) initiatives and programmes announced by the government last week has further brightened the outlook of the RE sector in Malaysia.

Analysts note the strong pipeline of RE projects will in particular be a significant boost for companies in the solar industry.

In their reports, analysts listed engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) solar players, namely Solarvest Holdings Bhd, Samaiden Group Bhd and Sunview Group Bhd, as well as Pekat Group Bhd, as main beneficiaries of the latest government initiative.

To recap, the Energy Transition and Public Utilities Ministry last week unveiled a cumulative 2.8 gigawatt (GW) of new RE quotas and 400 megawatt-hour of battery energy storage system (BESS) pilot project.

These included the continuation of the net energy metering (NEM) programme with additional quotas of 400 megawatt (MW); fifth bidding cycle of the Large Scale Solar (LSS) programme with quotas of 2GW; and low carbon energy generation programme of 400MW to be undertaken for non-solar energy such as wind, mini-hydro, biogas, biomass and hydrogen, among others.

RHB Research, which maintained its “overweight” stance on the overall power sector, noted it was full steam ahead for the RE industry.

“We are positive on the integrated clean energy programme 2024 as it continues to anchor the domestic RE ramp up, while providing sustainable job flows to contractors amid rising competition.

While the BESS pilot project’s rollout is essential for better RE integration, project returns remain unknown,” it said.

RHB Research said it had identified Solarvest, Samaiden, Sunview and Pekat as the main beneficiaries, as the programme would inject a potential RM5bil worth of contract opportunities.

It noted that Reservoir Link Energy Bhd would also stand to benefit from sub-contracting jobs and more mounting structure orders.

“With the allocation to a single developer up to 500MW, we believe this will attract more established players with strong war chests such as Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) and Petroliam Nasional Bhd’s green energy arm Gentari to participate more aggressively,” RHB Research said.

“Other potential winners will be asset owners of past LSS rounds, given their track records,” it added.

Hong Leong Investment Bank Research (HLIB Research) said the cumulative 2.8GW of new RE quotas through various programmes would significantly uplift the sector and stocks under its coverage.

“This sets in motion the government’s 2050 70% RE share target as outlined in the National Energy Transition Roadmap (that was) unveiled last year.

“In our view, the key highlight was the comeback of the LSS competitive bidding programme with a significantly larger quota size of 2GW,” the brokerage said.

“We are conservatively estimating solar EPCC opportunities of about RM7bil from the LSS5 programme. While granular details were by and large missing, quota awards for LSS5 could come in the first half of 2025 with EPCC contracts to be formalised thereafter,” it added.

HLIB Research maintained “overweight” on the power sector, citing strong structural themes as well as positive earnings growth cycle.

It said both Solarvest and Samaiden would be key winners from the slew of programmes announced last week.

MIDF Research noted the announcement last week signified a strong visibility of RE pipeline in the next 24 months.

It maintained a “positive” stance on power utilities premised on a firm policy layout on the energy transition which should drive improved growth and environment, social and governance profile for the sector.

MIDF Research’s top picks were Samaiden, Sunview and Pekat, viewing them as key immediate-term beneficiaries of the various RE programme rollouts.

It added that TNB would be one of the key beneficiaries in the asset ownership space, as it was the sole operator of the grid, which would likely see a step-up in capital expenditure to accommodate RE supply expansion.

Source: The Star

Sunny outlook for renewable energy

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Sabah offers lucrative opportunities for environmental, social and governance (ESG) conscious global investors, according to Invest Sabah Bhd.

Invest Sabah chief communications officer Datin Nirvana Jalil Ghani said the state is currently focusing on promoting ESG investments into Sabah.

“The government allocates about RM30 million annually to Sabah for forest preservation. And this expenditure does not include other investments. As you can see, in terms of research, governance, and more, we are moving towards a completely green approach. That’s why, even regarding the investments we bring into Sabah, our focus is on green technology and anything related to environmental sustainability,“ she told SunBiz.

Nirvana pointed to the uniqueness of Sabah which lies in the fact that 59% of Malaysia’s mangroves are located in the state which offers research and investment opportunities for local and international investors.

“In terms of rainforest, Sabah boasts the second oldest rainforest globally and the oldest tropical rainforest,” she added.

Currently, the state is seeking investment in manufacturing, tourism, agriculture, human capital, and infrastructure and utilities.

Furthermore, although the state government has a policy against exporting raw materials, it invites investors to explore opportunities by investing in and establishing processing factories in Sabah. This encompasses among others a range of industries, including cocoa, timber, and biomass.

For manufacturing, Sabah has Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP), which is wholly owned by the state government. An integrated industrial park covering 8,320 acres, it comprises several components, including industrial, commercial, R&D and institutions, residential and tourism development.

Sabah is located within the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area with international direct flights to Kota Kinabalu from China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Singapore and South Korea.

There are 2,309 flights arriving at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) a month, which equates to 77 flights per day or three flights per hour. On an average day, there is at least one flight arriving every 20 minutes (August 2023).

From January to May 2022, there were 558,169 registered tourist arrivals compared with 102,965 in the previous year.

In 2019, more than nine million passengers passed through KKIA, making it the second busiest airport in Malaysia after Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in terms of passenger and aircraft movements and the third busiest in terms of cargo handled.

The state’s major trading partners are Peninsular Malaysia (RM16.4 billion export, RM18.4 billion import), China (RM7.6 billion export, RM3.1 billion import), Australia (RM4.1 billion export, RM275 million import), European Union (RM3.4 billion export, RM861 million import), and India (RM3.5 billion export, 460 million import).

Source: The Sun

Sabah out to attract ESG-conscious global investors

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Malaysia’s power sector is flushed with a strong visibility of renewable energy (RE) pipeline under the latest large scale solar (LSS) and net energy metering (NEM) programmes over the next 12-24 months.

Analysts estimate that the latest large scale solar (LSS) and NEM programmes will translate into RM7.2 billion-RM8.4 billion worth of engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) jobs.

Last week, Energy Transition and Public Utilities Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof announced a cumulative 2.8 gigawatts (GW) of new RE quotas.

This included a 2GW allocation for Malaysia’s fifth LSS photovoltaic programme which will be open for bids soon. A developer can bid for up to 500MW.

Another initiative was Low Carbon Energy Generation boasting 400MW through the New Enhanced Dispatch Arrangement mechanism for non-solar energy such as wind, minihydro, biogas, biomass and hydrogen, among others.

The 400MW quota under the NEM mechanism, meanwhile, comprises 100MW for the household segment and another 300MW for the commercial and industrial segment.

“The 2.4GW combined solar quota under the latest LSS and NEM program translates into an estimated RM7.2-8.4b worth of EPCC jobs which we expect to be tendered out in the next 12-24 months,” MIDF Research said.

Big players within the utilities sector such as Tenaga Nasional Bhd and YTL Power International Bhd are likely to come in as anchors in their consortiums, especially for larger capacity bids, rthe firm added.

“One of the key changes in the latest LSS is the rise in capacity bid limit to 500MW which is five times the previous 100MW limit for LSS3 and 10 times the 50MW limit for LSS4.”

A project of such size could entail a huge capital expenditure of some RM2 billion-RM2.3 billion which requires fairly demanding balance sheet capacity, it said.

MIDF Research, however, noted that the prior LSS winners also included non-utilities players from the property, plantation and construction sectors.

Landowners could come in as strategic partners given the huge requirement for landbank as a 500MW solar farm is estimated to require at least 2,000 acres of total landbank.

“It is uncertain at this point if the regulators will allow multiple locations for each LSS bid pending official details of the program,” the firm said.

It highlighted that one of the key pain points in prior LSS programmes was the excessive competition to supply energy to a single buyer which has driven down returns to single-digit levels.

The Corporate Green Power Programme (CGPP) model is viewed to be a more liberalised model allowing players to seek their own offtaker, thereby allowing better price discovery in the market.

“Having said that, we also take note of the fact that the CGPP are essentially exclusive arrangements between solar power producers and their offtaker that requires a fair allocation of grid upgrade costs (to accommodate more injection of intermittent RE sources to the grid), which is currently absent.

“Once such fair cost allocations and third-party access to the grid (TPA) are established, we believe a more liberalised model for large scale RE could be expected,” MIDF Research said.

Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd (HLIB) expects the cumulative RE quotas to uplift the sector and for stocks under its coverage namely Solarvest Holdings Bhd and Samaiden Group Bhd.

“This sets in motion the government’s 2050 70 per cent RE share target as outlined in the National Energy Transition Roadmap unveiled last year.

“In our view, the key highlight was the comeback of LSS5 with a significantly larger quota size of 2GW (2.4 times larger than LSS4 awards).

“We are conservatively estimating solar EPCC opportunities of about RM7 billion from the LSS5 programme,” it said in a note.

Quota awards for LSS5 could come in the first half of 2025 with EPCC contracts to be formalised thereafter, HLIB said,

“It is unclear if foreign participation limits will still be in place as it was with LSS4 considering the increased scale. Nevertheless, we reckon with panel prices continuing to decline (US$11 cents per watt) bid tariffs could reach a new low,” it said.

Meanwhile, RHB Research identified EPCC solar players to benefit from the Integrated Clean Energy programme as it will inject a potential RM5 billion worth of contract opportunities.

Key beneficiaries included Solarvest, Samaiden, Sunway Group and Pekat Group.

Reservoir Link Energy Bhd stands to benefit from sub-contracting jobs and more mounting structure orders.

“With the allocation to a single developer of up to 500MW, we believe this will attract more established players with strong war chests such as TNB and Petroliam Nasional Bhd/Gentari to participate more aggressively.

“Other potential winners will be asset owners of past LSS rounds, given their track records. Previous winners include Advancecon Holdings Bhd, Ranhill Utilities Bhd, Uzma Bhd, JAKS Resources Bhd, Gopeng Bhd and TNB,” RHB Research.

Source: NST

Latest LSS, NEM programmes may translate into EPCC jobs worth up to RM8.4b, say analysts

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The Maharani Energy Gateway project, with a total investment of US$2 billion, to be built in Muar, Johor, is set to promote Malaysia’s green energy initiatives further and boost the country’s trade and investment opportunities with Chinese companies, said Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

The Maharani Energy Gateway project is a collaboration between Maharani Energy Gateway Sdn Bhd (MEG) and China Energy International Group (CEIG) Sdn Bhd to build a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant and a green hydrogen and green ammonia plant.

Tengku Zafrul emphasised that the government is encouraging more world-renowned entities, such as CEIG, to invest in new ideas and businesses that could be Malaysia’s next big breakthroughs.

“This will help catalyst new wealth creation while promoting the nation’s sustainable development goals,” he said after witnessing the signing of two collaborative framework agreements between MEG and CEIG today.

Tengku Zafrul said policies such as the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 and the New Energy Transition Roadmap have resulted in many foreign parties forging collaborations with domestic players to drive the nation’s greener future.

“The signing between MEG and CEIG and their CCGT, green hydrogen and green ammonia facilities at the Maharani Energy Gateway will complement the surrounding oil and gas, petroleum and petrochemical industries in Johor, notably Pengerang, Tanjung Bin, Tanjung Langsat and Pasir Gudang.

“It will also help to position Malaysia as a renewable energy-focused and sustainable regional energy hub and ecosystem,” he added.

Meanwhile, MEG executive chairman Datuk Dr Daing A Malek Daing A Rahaman said the CCGT Power Plant would use natural gas and hydrogen to generate electricity, which can be exported to the national grid or neighbouring countries.

“The joint venture project will complement Malaysia’s Green Energy Initiative, which includes various programmes and policies to promote the development and adoption of renewable energy sources,” he said.

The Maharani Energy Gateway Project is a sea reclamation project off the coast of Muar, Johor.

The project aims to create an energy hub and deep-sea port by building three artificial islands covering an area of 1,295 square hectares and creating 45,000 job opportunities.

Source: Bernama

Maharani Energy Gateway to promote national Green Energy initiatives

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Property subsectors including logistic warehouses, data centres and Grade A premium offices are expected to have the most positive growth this year, following their positive trends in demand, rental rates and market sentiment in 2023, according to JLL Malaysia managing director Jamie Tan when presenting at the JLL Greater Kuala Lumpur Property Market Monitor 4Q2023 press conference on Jan 29.

JLL Malaysia logistics and industrial team member Derek Yap said warehouse absorption in Greater Kuala Lumpur remained robust last year, as demonstrated by the strong pre-commitment level from occupiers. “In 2023, the projects that were delivered had at least a 70% pre-let rate. Rental growth was also quite robust, reaching an annual rate of 7.4%.”

Yap also mentioned that changes in the supply chain and implementation of China Plus One Strategy continue to drive the demand for high-quality logistics space. “The overall vacancy rate has increased but still remains low as the market saw a lot of new supply coming. Most of the developers that jumped on the bandwagon to develop warehouses in 2021/2022 will see their projects complete this year, so we can expect a significant increase in supply this year,” Yap said.

Due to that, Yap is expecting a more moderate rental growth for logistic warehouses of around 2% to 3%, as he anticipated that the increase in new supply should be able to meet the demand in the market. He pointed out that some of the future supply of logistic warehouses have already managed to secure tenancies for the respective warehouses upon completion.

Data centres, on the other hand, have experienced significant growth in terms of supply over the past five years. JLL Malaysia data centre team member Kent Seet said the current supply of data centres stands at approximately 200+ megawatts (MW) and is projected to reach 750MW by 2025.

Seet added, “[Additionally,] the country could also potentially have a total capacity of 2,700+ MW by 2027. This is possible given the increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) applications that are anticipated to drive the next surge in demand for data centres in Malaysia.

“The demand for AI applications has a ripple effect throughout the supply chain, catalysing advancements in power supply, cooling infrastructure and specialised hardware. The need for more computing power drives improvements in power delivery systems, while the high computational requirements lead to innovations in cooling technologies.”

Seet also shared that the sector will enjoy more growth, and with more growth comes an increased demand for power. More power generates more heat, leading to rising demand for better cooling methods, including immersive cooling and direct-to-chip cooling, among others.

Hence, locations offering ample power supply and other critical infrastructure will attract data centre investments in the coming years.

Speaking on the office market, JLL Malaysia office leasing advisory team member Quiny Lee said the office market experienced a surge in demand as companies increasingly relocated to modern and environmentally sustainable spaces that align with environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.

She reported that office rental rates continued to grow in the fourth quarter of 2023 (4Q2023) where overall rents increased by 1.3% compared to 3Q2023, reaching RM6.42 psf per month.

“So the office market saw a notable increase in its net absorption during the previous quarter. This has led to higher occupancy rates and enhanced investor confidence, indicating sustained growth and a strong demand for office spaces. There continues to be a strong preference among tenants for high-quality buildings, particularly newer properties or Grade A premium buildings.

“In terms of vacancy performance between older and newer stock, it is noteworthy that green-certified office buildings outperformed their non-certified counterparts. In 3Q and 4Q2023, green-certified buildings witnessed a significant decrease in vacancy rates by 500 basis points. In comparison, non-green-certified buildings saw an increase of 100 basis points in vacancy rates,” Lee shared.

While Grade A and Grade A premium office buildings are becoming more popular among tenants, Lee said the older buildings, grades B and below, are seeing an increase in vacancy rates and subsequent downward pressure on average rental rates.

In order to curb overhang among these older buildings, both Lee and Tan said many parties are now repurposing these buildings or tearing them down and building new ones with high-quality specifications.

Overall, Tan said the positive trends observed across all market segments in 2023 are expected to continue into the next 12 months. “We expect the overnight policy rate (OPR) to remain at 3%. The OPR or any interest rates for any country relies heavily on the interest rates of the US [Federal] Reserve. However, now we can see certain countries moving away slowly towards an alternative currency. Some countries are even trading using their currency. In Malaysia, manageable or low interest rates can help to spur the economy as well as create opportunities for investors and developers.”

Source: The Edge Malaysia

JLL Malaysia: Logistic warehouses, data centres, Grade A premium offices to have most positive growth this year

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An investment worth US$80 milliion (RM378.8 million) promised by a stem cell scientist would position Sabah as a world-class medical wellness tourism hub, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.

He was referring to the expansion plan by Professor Datuk Seri Dr Mike Chan to set up a biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility at Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park and European Wellness Centre Asia Pacific hub in Alam Mesra here.

During a recent meeting with Hajiji, Chan said that both his Sabah-born wife Professor Datuk Seri Dr Michelle Wong and himself plan to expand their operations in Sabah to cater to the Asean and BIMP-Eaga markets.

With the facilities in place, he added it would also help Sabah to gain a niche market in the medical wellness education tourism sector.

This is because many stem cell researchers from around the world will be coming to the state to do research in the bio-regenerative medicine and sciences.

Chan, renowned in the bio-regenerative medicine industry globally, has written more than 50 books and won several awards including the World Chinese Wellness Entrepreneurship Leadership Award from China last year.

European Wellness which was founded in 1991 has 46 hospitals and centres worldwide including in Germany, Switzerland, Santorini in Greece and across Asia with a wide range of clientele under its belt.

Source: NST

CM: US$80 million investment will position Sabah as world-class medical tourism hub

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The Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry (Miti) has engaged relevant ministries and agencies like the Human Resources Ministry, the Higher Education Ministry, and the National Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council to increase Malaysia’s skilled workforce.

Its minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said the engagements would come up with the proper planning needed to ramp up the number of skilled Malaysian workers.

“One example is that we are discussing allowing students studying in Malaysian universities, like engineering students, to work. Currently, they are not allowed to work.

“We can look at areas where there are not enough Malaysians, especially in the value-added services and high technology sectors, and allow the students to work for a period of time. We have not gone to the cabinet yet.

“That is one interim solution, but we also need to entice our workers and students abroad to come back; we have many (workers and students abroad),” he told the press after the Miti Dialogues 2024 today.

Tengku Zafrul also stressed that as investment inflows come in, investors need skilled manpower.

“For example, when we recently opened the AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd’s plant in Kulim, Kedah, they needed 6,000 engineers while Intel needed 5,000 engineers.

It is positive, but at the same time, our country needs to ensure that the talents are there,” he said.

Meanwhile, Miti is finalising a few free trade agreements (FTA), including with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is expected to be concluded by the end of June this year.

“One of the exports is textile. There is a certification of halal textile. In fact, China and Indonesia are doing that. Malaysia does not have that yet.

“We have asked the Halal Development Corp, together with the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), to come out with a standard for halal textile,” Tengku Zafrul added.

The Miti Dialogues 2024 saw the attendance of almost 300 people from 24 ministries and Miti’s agencies, including representatives from 103 associations, chambers of commerce, and business councils.

The day saw a dynamic exchange of views and discussion on strategies, solutions and stronger execution to further enhance Malaysia’s industrial, trade and investment ecosystem, premised on the New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP) 2030 as the overarching policy.

Source: Bernama

MITI working with relevant ministries, agencies to boost skilled workers

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Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) is said to be exploring plans to build a new hyperscale data centre (HDC) in Malaysia, expanding its capacity from the existing Klang Valley Data Centre (KVDC) and Iskandar Puteri Data Centre (IPDC), according to CIMB Investment Bank.

HDCs are large facilities offering at least 40 Megawatts (MW) of IT power capacity and often bigger, catering to large cloud service providers and internet companies, according to the research house.

Leveraging its extensive submarine and terrestrial networks, as well as strong local relationships, CIMB sees that TM may be able to attract strong strategic international partners to co-invest in such an HDC.

“Besides helping to partly fund the investment required, a strong strategic international partner could also share expertise in the design and operation of DCs that cater to hyperscalers and AI workloads,” CIMB said in a note on Monday.

“This could include the implementation of more efficient cooling solutions such as direct-to-chip liquid or immersive cooling, as well as advanced real-time server monitoring platforms, to ensure seamless management of expensive graphics-processing unit clusters to prevent overheating,” it added.

Furthermore, CIMB posited that the strategic partners could also help secure tenants for the new HDC, by offering space for expansion to their existing DC tenants.

If TM proceeds, CIMB expects the group to develop the HDC in phases. “If kicked off in 2H2024, the first phase could be ready for service by 1H2026.”

While there will be little boost to earnings in the financial year 2024 and 2025 due to the timing of project completion, CIMB believes investors “could get more excited about TM over the potential value creation from a more aggressive expansion of its DC business”.

“We value TM’s DC business at a net present value of RM2.53 billion (66 sen per share),” it added.

As such, CIMB has raised its target price on TM to RM6.85 and maintained its “buy” call on the counter.

At Monday’s market close, TM’s shares were up three sen or 0.51% at RM5.96, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM22.87 billion. Year to date, the counter has grown by 6.43%, or 36 sen, from RM5.60 at the start of the year.

Source: The Edge Markets

Telekom Malaysia said to be exploring plans to build new hyperscale data centre

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As Asean countries stand to chart stronger economic growth this year compared to some of their developed peers, Malaysia as a member of the Asean bloc is in a favourable position to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI).

Economic experts expect the country to see improvements in FDI and to an extent compete with some of its regional peers in the FDI space.

According to world investment statistics compiled by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Malaysia’s FDI inflow in 2020 amounted to US$3.2bil or 2.6% of the total FDI inflow to Asean countries.

It climbed to US$12.2bil in 2021 and US$16.9bil in 2022, raising its share of Asean’s total to 5.7% and 7.6% respectively. Malaysia’s ranking in FDI size among the 10 Asean countries also rose incrementally from sixth placing in 2020 to fifth in 2021 and fourth in 2022.

Economics professor at Sunway University Yeah Kim Leng told StarBiz Malaysia has not fared too badly in attracting FDI but it has been overtaken consistently by Indonesia and Vietnam in recent years.

He said the size of FDI relative to gross domestic product (GDP) is a better measure to compare the ability to attract FDI across countries. Based on this measure, the country’s FDI in 2022 amounted to 4.2% of GDP and placed it in fourth position behind Vietnam (4.4%), Cambodia (12.4%) and Singapore (32.3%).

He said as one of the two upper middle-income Asean countries, Malaysia’s 4% to 5% annual real GDP growth projected for this year is better than its income peer, Thailand, as well as high-income Singapore and Brunei.

“Countries that have reached a high income level as defined by the World Bank find it hard to sustain growth above 2% to 3% per annum.

“Unsurprisingly, the rest of Asean member countries which are in the lower middle-income category are growing at 5% to 7% per annum, as the growth rate is faster with a smaller income base.

“Malaysia is on the cusp of joining the high-income nations within the next two to three years.

“Barring another major global setback, the country’s ability to maintain trend-level growth is assured by the new administration’s focus on strengthening governance and undertaking the necessary fiscal reforms and structural upgrading to unleash new sources of growth emanating from greening and digitalising the economy,” Yeah noted.

Juwai IQI global chief economist Shan Saeed said in terms of FDI, competition is getting tough in the Asean region. He said there are five major countries which are competing for FDI in the region, namely, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines.

“We expect FDI to move into various countries according to the strength and productive labour force. For example, in Malaysia, we expect FDI inflows into the manufacturing, electrical and electronics, real estate, technology and eCommerce sectors.

“For Indonesia, the company expects inflows into mining, technology, electric vehicles and services.

“Vietnam is anticipated to attract FDI into manufacturing, real estate and technology, while Thailand into manufacturing, technology, financial services and real estate. FDI into the Philippines will be in services, manufacturing and real estate.

“Having said that, Malaysia will be able to compete with other neighbouring countries because of its productive labour force, stable rules and regulation, and above all its strategic geography.

“When it comes to global FDI, Malaysia remains germane for many players in the region for long-term investments,” he noted.

To further spur FDI into Malaysia, Shan said maintaining macroeconomic stability, enhancing the skills of the labour force, leveraging technology, maintaining economic policy consistency and achieving growth stability were vital.

AmBank Group chief economist Firdaos Rosli said from the perspective of portfolio investments, Malaysia would likely benefit from the flow of foreign capital coming into emerging markets amid the anticipation of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed) and other major central banks in 2024.

However, he said it may come in lower than anticipated if the major central banks’ higher-for-longer interest rates narrative were to persist beyond the first half of this year. As it stands, in 2024, he expects a higher foreign inflow into Malaysian equities but slower into the bond market than in 2023.

“In terms of approved manufacturing and services investments, generally, the approved investment numbers will remain healthy in 2024.

“With the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) announced last year, I assume that the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) and other relevant investment authorities will ramp up their promotional activities to encourage more FDI into Malaysia.

“It all boils down to the time frame these approved investments turn into realised investments in the coming months and quarters.

“This outlook is contingent upon various factors and not from government approvals alone,” he said.

In terms of Malaysia’s FDI versus its Asean neighbours for this year, Firdaos thinks Malaysia would still be trailing behind other more “attractive” investment destinations such as Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The entire trade and investment ecosystem needs a holistic review, i.e. beyond NIMP 2030 alone, should Malaysia aim to edge up versus its neighbours.

To strengthen or attract more FDIs into the country, he said the government should further mainstream the said plans into policies.

“Investors may need to understand how these plans would impact their existing and future investments concerning the overall cost of doing business. Furthermore, it is still too early to conclude whether the plans could strategically position Malaysia’s investment attractiveness higher than its peers,” Firdaos said.

Meanwhile, Asean economist at HSBC Yun Liu said Malaysia has been topping Asean as one of the main beneficiaries of consistent and quality FDI inflows, especially in the tech manufacturing space. This would provide hopes for the local trade sector to emerge stronger when the trade tide turns, she noted.

Tax incentives, FDI-friendly policies, free trade agreements, ease of doing business, and labour cost effectiveness would further spur FDI inflows into Malaysia, she said.

“A better trade prospect along with resilient domestic demand will drive Malaysia’s growth in 2024. While a turn in the global electronics cycle has not translated into the country’s external sector yet, Malaysia is poised to be a main beneficiary, albeit even slightly delayed than regional peers, she said.

At the same time, Liu expects all Asean countries to see accelerating growth in 2024, with Malaysia expected to come in the middle of the pack. “Our 2024 growth forecasts is Vietnam at 6%, Philippines (5.3%), Indonesia (5.2%), Malaysia (4.5%), Thailand (3.8%), and Singapore (2.4%),” she said.

Juwai’s Shan said he is upbeat of Malaysia’s FDI as the nation’s growth model would be driven by two major variables in the GDP equation: consumption and investment.

He said Malaysia is one the key players when it comes to manufacturing. Many global players want to leverage its strategic geography, educated, and productive labor force. Moreover, trade and commerce would bolster the GDP outlook at the macro level.

“We at Juwai IQI expect trade volumes to stay higher in the range of 10% to 15% in 2024. Tourism has become an economic tool to buttress the local businesses and keep the consumption pattern moving for the economy. This bodes well for FDI inflows,” Shan said.

AmBank’s Firdaos said he is optimistic on the Asean region. In terms of GDP growth, he expects the region to fare better in 2024 compared to the prior year and higher than global and advanced economies. He said the gradual recovery in global trade would lend support to Asean’s growth.

“The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) October projections expect Asean to grow at 4.2% in 2023 versus 4.5% in 2024, whereas the Asian Development Bank (ADB) believes that the region’s growth is coming in at 4.3% and 4.7%, respectively. The Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia will likely lead the region’s fastest-growing economies in 2024, while other economies are expected to fare better this year amid a gradual recovery in global trade and a healthy labour market.

“I expect Malaysia to experience some “rebound” this year as semiconductor exports recover in time. Ambank is pencilling Malaysia’s growth to come in at 4.5%, with the overnight policy rate (OPR) remaining static at 3%, but downside risks remain amid an inflationary outlook.

“The government’s planned subsidy rationalisation is still hazy because the magnitude of the eventual floating of RON95 to inflation remains largely unknown. As such, we are looking at inflation ranging from 2.5%-3.5%, but if price pressures intensify, it may come in around the mid-to-high side of the said range,” Firdaos said.

Source: The Star

Higher FDI expected

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Airai Global Corporation (AGC), backed by investors from Malaysia and Singapore, will invest a significant amount in the development of a massive integrated resort in Palau over the course of 10 to 15 years.

The state government of Airai and AGC have inked a cooperative agreement for the development of the integrated resort in Airai, one of the sixteen states of Palau, covering an area of 44 square kilometers (km).

The resort will include opulent resorts, waterfront villas, iconic buildings, a marina, a seaport, theme parks, and medical facilities spread across nearly 5,000 acres that will drive Palau’s economic development.

AGC is currently working on completing the project’s overall blueprint and settling on the plan’s associated costs.

According to Hayato Sugiyama, vice president and chief operating officer of AGC, Palau is anticipated to generate significant revenue from this development.

It will put Palau “on the map,” he said.

“It is going to be a huge investment, and this will be a game changer for Palau,” he said after witnessing the signing of the collaborative agreement between AGC and the Airai state government here recently.

The blueprint for the entire plan is still in preparation, and AGC is still calculating the costs involved.

Palau, located in the western Pacific Ocean, consists of about 340 islands that make up an area of 459 square km. As of 2022, Palau has a gross domestic product (GDP) of US$230 million and a GDP per capita of US$14,530, with the services industry contributing about 80 per cent of the economy.

Alvin Lee, chief development officer of AGC, said that the company is optimistic about the tourism projects because of the island’s potential for new developments, health tourism, and cultural tourism.

He revealed that the company plans to use solar power and waste management initiatives on the island, in addition to promoting eco-friendly travel.

According to Lee, the massive resort project is expected to produce a gross development value in the multi-billion dollar range.

Governor Norman Ngiratecheboet of the Airai state government, meanwhile, believes that the resort project will have a big positive impact on the state.

“We are looking forward to this project as it will offer employment for the local population, and the locals will also be able to offer services to tourists,” he said.

He emphasised that Palau is safe and secure for any kind of cooperation and that it is now “open for business.”

There will also be a passport program available for migration to Palau in an effort to increase the number of high-net-worth foreign migrants, he said.

Source: NST

AGC to invest substantially in Palau Integrated Resort

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Kulim High-Tech’s strategic location and dedicated focus on high-tech industries attract major technology players

IN THE ever-evolving tapestry of Malaysia’s real estate market, two prominent players, Iskandar Malaysia and Kulim High-Tech Park Corp Sdn Bhd, emerge as beacons of innovation and transformation for Malaysia’s property sector.

Among the issues discussed at the PropertyGuru Malaysia Property Market Outlook 2024 Virtual Panel Discussion recently included the dynamic real estate landscape, centring on the pivotal roles these two high-tech hubs play in shaping the country’s economic and property development narrative.

Iskandar Malaysia: Catalyst for Growth

Iskandar Malaysia, positioned as a key economic development zone in the southern part of the country, stands out as a testament to Malaysia’s commitment to progress.

As a flagship economic corridor, it serves as a magnet for investors, developers and businesses seeking opportunities in a strategically positioned and well-connected region, particularly Johor being the neighbouring state for Singaporeans to enter Malaysia.

DataSense head of real estate intelligence Dr Lee Nai Jia predicts Johor to continue experiencing robust property demand from foreigners, particularly driven by a surge in interest from Singaporeans.

According to the PropertyGuru Malaysia Property Market Outlook Report 2024, Iskandar Puteri in Johor has witnessed the highest proportion of foreign demand, predominantly from Singaporeans.

The announcement of the Special Economic Zone and the ongoing development of the Johor Baru (JB)-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link have been essential in amplifying interest from Singaporeans, Lee noted.

The soaring property prices in Singapore further contribute to the heightened demand in Johor, particularly for properties priced below RM1 million.

“We are seeing that (Singaporeans) are not looking at high-end homes priced above RM1 million which ties in well with them buying property in Malaysia.

“In terms of the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) impact, we suspect that potential buyers are still analysing and taking their time before deciding. We observe that Malaysians living in Singapore are also going back and looking at properties,” he said during the panel discussion.

This group, which frequently commutes between the two countries due to high rental costs in Singapore, represents the first wave of property buyers.

The second wave comprises potential buyers from Singapore, drawn in by the Malaysian government’s economic development initiatives, leading to increased interest and demand.

Meanwhile, Knight Frank Malaysia ED of research and consultancy Amy Wong said connectivity plays a pivotal role in attracting interest.

The development’s proximity to key transportation infrastructure positions it as a hub of economic activity and a hotspot for real estate growth.

Iskandar Malaysia’s allure extends beyond domestic borders, drawing attention from foreign investors, particularly Singaporeans.

National Property Information Centre (Napic) director Norhisham Shafie said the recent relaxation of the MM2H programme catalyses increased foreign investment, with Singaporean buyers exploring the real estate landscape Iskandar Malaysia offers.

“The relaxation was just recently announced so we cannot see a lot of impact on the transaction yet. But, of course, the three tiers will attract a lot of individual foreigners,” he said.

In December 2023, the government unveiled a revamped version of the MM2H programme which now has three tiers, namely Silver, Gold and Platinum.

Under the Platinum tier, participants must have a fixed deposit (FD) of RM5 million. After one year, a maximum withdrawal of 50% is allowed for property purchase (with a minimum value of RM1.5mil and above), healthcare and domestic travel within Malaysia.

The Gold tier sets the FD requirement at RM2 million with similar withdrawal provisions for property purchases (minimum value of RM750,000 and above), healthcare and domestic travel.

The Silver tier requires RM500,000 in FD with similar withdrawal provisions.

Meanwhile, Lee said the trend of Singaporeans exploring properties in Iskandar Malaysia might have already begun.

The connectivity enhancements, economic development announcements, and the MM2H programme create a perfect storm, positioning Iskandar Malaysia as an attractive destination for foreign buyers.

As the real estate market evolves, the concept of sustainable development takes centre stage.

Iskandar Malaysia, in its pursuit of innovation, incorporates green features and sustainable practices into its projects, aligning with global environmental consciousness.

Knight Frank’s Wong said the future of sustainable development in the real estate sector lies in a combination of innovative construction methods, technological advancements, and a shift in consumer preferences.

Her insights resonate with Iskandar Malaysia’s endeavours, reflecting a commitment to environmentally responsible construction and a vision that goes beyond traditional development paradigms.

Kulim High-Tech: Magnet for Tech Giants

While Iskandar Malaysia shapes the southern region, Kulim High-Tech emerges as a burgeoning tech powerhouse in the northern part of Malaysia.

With a focus on high-tech industries, Kulim High-Tech becomes a catalyst for economic growth, innovation and a unique real estate landscape.

Wong described Kulim as a very strong competitor for Penang, as it is a beneficiary of the spillover from the popularity of the latter as an electrical and electronic (E&E) hub.

Meanwhile, Lee said Kulim High-Tech’s strategic location and dedicated focus on high-tech industries attract major technology players. The developing neighbouring areas, such as Padang Serai, have witnessed the most significant growth at 59%, compared to other regions.

“Based on our data at DataSense, Padang Serai has the highest year-on-year (YoY) growth in terms of number of visitors, which is closely linked to the Kulim High-Tech Park,” he said.

The discussion highlighted the region’s potential to become a tech hub, drawing parallels with Silicon Valley and other global tech-centric zones.

Green Building Index’s (GBI) accreditation panel chairman Chan Seong Aun said transitioning towards industrialised buildings may entail higher initial costs for the first few projects. However, he emphasised that there could be a notable 20%-30% reduction in construction costs over time as the same systems are consistently employed.

His insights on industrialised building systems find resonance in Kulim High-Tech’s commitment to innovation besides saving costs.

As tech giants establish their presence, the demand for cutting-edge, sustainable real estate solutions is set to rise.

Like Iskandar Malaysia, Kulim High-Tech understands the importance of sustainable development.

As the tech industry prioritises environmental responsibility, Kulim High-Tech integrates green features into its real estate projects, providing a blueprint for sustainable urban development.

The panel also discussed preference and options among potential homeowners.

Lee said Malaysians, faced with higher homeownership costs, are willing to forgo certain amenities to make homes more affordable.

In response, developers may consider omitting amenities to reduce overall development costs and enhance affordability for consumers.

“According to our consumer sentiment service, buyers are thinking of giving up some key amenities. We also see that some of them are thinking of shifting to the rental market to accumulate savings,” he said.

Meanwhile, Chan said another factor that buyers need to consider is their safety against natural disasters such as floods and landslides while encouraging future homeowners to purchase green buildings, which have lower flood risks.

Source: The Malaysian Reserve

Iskandar Malaysia, Kulim High-Tech reshape Malaysia’s real estate landscape

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Selangor aims to continue achieving more robust growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) and will be able to compete with major cities in Southeast Asia by 2025 with several development projects launched since 2022, says Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.

Citing Selangor’s economic growth of 11.9 per cent in 2022, which surpassed Malaysia’s 8.7 per cent, Amirudin expressed his optimism that the state would be able to repeat its economic success this year.

“This year, we expect to achieve better GDP growth than national. And InsyaAllah (God willing), with the plans that I had presented in 2022, by 2025, not only are we aiming to uphold our economic performance, but we will also be able to compete with cities in Southeast Asia such as Jakarta, Bandung, Phnom Penh, Bangkok or other developing areas,” he said in his speech at the Gombak Parliament Hari Prihatin Rakyat: Entrepreneurship and Cultural Carnival, here today.

Amirudin, who is also the Gombak MP, shared some of the state government’s plans for development opportunities, such as the Sabak Bernam Development Area (Sabda) under the First Selangor Plan (RS-1), involving the development of high-value crops on an area of 1,317 hectares and estimated to generate up to RM248 million in revenue annually.

Announced in July 2022, some of its projects include the development of the Sekinchan Seafood Landing Complex, R&R facilities and the Air Manis business hub.

Meanwhile, on a separate matter, Amirudin lauded Yayasan Hijrah Selangor (Hijrah) for producing successful entrepreneurs under its programme.

However, the Menteri Besar reminded the participants to pay off their outstanding loans, emphasising that the funds would be redistributed to other eligible entrepreneurs.

“This is a loan, not a grant. Repayment is mandatory since the funds are redistributed for future use to create a productive cycle that promotes entrepreneurial growth,” he said.

On January 11, Hijrah chief executive officer Datuk Mearia Hamzah said that the agency is engaging with collection agents to retrieve outstanding loans that have ballooned to over RM100 million from some 16,000 businesses since 2015.

She said some 300 borrowers have been identified to have not fulfilled a single loan repayment and have since been blacklisted in the country’s credit reporting agency CTOS.

State executive councillor for entrepreneurship Mohd Najwan Halimi said on November 14 of last year that over 15,000 borrowers had fallen behind on their repayments, accounting for 22 per cent of the RM135 million in total loans.

He said 58,885 individuals have received loans through the programme, totalling RM780 million.

Source: Selangor Journal

MB: Selangor aims stronger GDP growth, compete with major regional cities by 2025

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The Net Energy Metering (NEM) programme will continue with an additional quota of 100 megawatts (MW) for NEM Rakyat and 300MW for NEM NOVA, as part of the implementation of the Integrated Clean Energy programme this year, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.

Fadillah, who is also Energy Transition and Public Utilities Minister, said that the quota offer period is set until December 2024 or until the allocated quota is exhausted, and applications can be submitted from Feb 5 through the eNEM system on the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) website at www.seda.gov.my.

“This programme will enable at least 25,000 domestic users and 100 users in the commercial and industrial categories to utilise the roof space of their buildings for electricity generation for self-consumption through the installation of photovoltaic solar systems (PV),” he said in a statement issued in conjunction with the International Day of Clean Energy today.

Besides NEM, Fadillah said the Large Scale Solar (LSS) programme for the development of solar power plants with a quota offer of 2,000MW will be opened starting April 1, with the sale of Request for Proposal (RFP) documents by the Energy Commission (ST).

Several updates would be made to enhance the success of the LSS programme, including the creation of a special category for the development of floating solar power plants with a quota of 500MW and an increase in the participation limit for a company up to 500MW.

“The implementation of the LSS programme will be conducted through a bidding process and on a larger scale to ensure a transparent and fair developer selection process and to secure energy generation tariff offers at the most competitive rates.”

Fadillah said that the Low Carbon Energy Generation Programme through the New Enhanced Dispatched Arrangement (NEDA) mechanism would be implemented with a total quota of 400MW to open up opportunities for participation in the development of generation projects from non-solar sources such as wind, small hydro, biogas, biomass, hydrogen and so on.

Participation in this programme is based on a first come, first serve basis, and applications can be submitted from February 5 through the Single Buyer website at www.singlebuyer.com.my.

In addition, the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) pilot project with a total capacity of 400MWj will commence in the first quarter of 2024 and will be implemented by Tenaga Nasional Berhad, operated by the Grid System Operator and supervised by ST.

“The implementation of this pilot project will support the nation’s energy transition aspirations through the strengthening of the elec

According to Fadillah, the ministry is also studying and developing new programmes and initiatives in the integrated clean energy field based on advancements in the renewable energy sector and the demand for green electricity supply.

“All these efforts aim to enhance the clean energy mix in the country’s electricity supply while opening up more opportunities and access to green electricity,” he said.

He further said that the implementation of the Integrated Clean Energy programme for this year would support the nation’s energy transition and carbon footprint reduction initiatives, in addition to generating economic overflow in the form of direct investment valued at RM12 billion in the renewable energy industry and creating at least 36,000 job opportunities for the people.

The International Day of Clean Energy serves to raise awareness and mobilise action for a just and inclusive transition to clean energy, based on Sustainable Development Goal 7, which aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy supply.

Source: Bernama

NEM to continue this year with additional 100Mw quota for rakyat

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Data centres (DCs) with an estimated IT power capacity of 827 megawatts (MW) are expected to come online from 2023 to 2026, resulting in a quadrupling of DC capacity in the market, benefitting telecommunication operators, construction companies and property developers, according to CIMB Investment Bank and KAF Equities Sdn Bhd.

In a joint research note, the two houses said the capacity is expected to increase from around 200-250MW at the end of 2023 to over 1GW by the end of 2026, thanks to the initiatives by operators to expand capacities, particularly in Johor and Cyberjaya.

Several Malaysian companies, including Telekom Malaysia Bhd (“Buy”, TP: RM6.20) , Time dotCom (“Buy”, TP: RM5.85) and YTL Power, are set to benefit from their development plans for DCs in the two regions.

The firms in a note on Friday highlighted that YTL Power is in the early stage of developing its Green DC Park, which will initially provide 48MW of the total 500MW planned over the next decade, while Telekom Malaysia is constructing the second block of its Klang Valley Data Centre (KVDC) and Iskandar Puteri Data Centre (IPDC), adding around 18-20MW of IT power capacity.

Meanwhile, Time dotCom, which has a stake in the AIMS Group, is set to build the second block (8MW) of its Cyberjaya DC by January 2024, with an additional 15-20MW to be achieved in upcoming years.

Elsewhere, Sunway Construction secured construction jobs from Yondr Group worth RM1.7 billion and K2 worth RM193 million.

Gamuda, with its Industrialised Building System (IBS) plant in Klang Valley, won a contract from AIMS while IJM, another company with an IBS facility in Klang Valley, is reportedly in negotiations for a DC construction job.

Crescendo Corp sold three plots of land in Johor to STT GDC, Yu Ao Sdn Bhd as well as Microsoft for DC projects, while MN Holdings has secured substation engineering jobs from GDS and this year won a contract for high voltage horizontal directional drilling for an unnamed client in Johor.

Meanwhile, Powerwell Holdings bagged a RM16 million contract to supply electrical low voltage switchboards, active harmonic filter and uninterrupted power supply to AirTrunk’s JHB1 DC, said the research firms.

“The Malaysian DC market could go through a short-term digestion phase to absorb all the incoming capacity. However, we believe demand should ultimately be strong over the longer term, underpinned by fast-growing digital economies, continued cloud migration and soon, Artificial Intelligence (AI) developments.

“Besides domestic demand, it is also worthy to note that the new DCs will serve global/China cloud service providers (CSPs) and Internet giants’ expansion in SEA/Asia (with Singapore unable to meet this demand due to supply constraints),” said the research firms.

They also noted that the power needs of the new DCs will be met by agreements signed by Tenaga Nasional Berhad with six operators and MRANTI Corp, with an aim to reduce the usual electricity supply timeframe from 36-48 months to just 12 months.

Source: The Edge Malaysia

Telcos, developers set to gain from data centre boom — CIMB, KAF

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The AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd campus at the Kulim Hi-Tech Park (KHTP) which is part of a RM8.5 billion (about €1.7 billion) investment in Malaysia is officially open.

The opening ceremony took place at the AT&S new administration building, which marked the completion of the key production plant of the world’s leading manufacturers of high-end printed circuit board (PCB) and integrated circuit (IC) substrates.

AT&S chief executive officer Andreas Gerstenmayer attributed the successful completion of the construction works in a record time of just over two years to the employees in the Kulim plant and close collaboration with the Malaysian authorities.

“This huge success was made possible by our workers and employees in Kulim. This is your day and also a historic day for AT&S that is worthy of a celebration. I take great pride to bear witness to the achievement of this great milestone.

“The quick progress was facilitated by close collaboration with Malaysian representatives and authorities on the national, regional and local level.

“The authorities in Malaysia, especially Mida and the management of the Kulim High Tech Park and Advantage Austria from the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, supported us a lot,” Gerstenmayer said in his speech at the opening ceremony.

Present was Investment, Trade and Industry deputy minister Liew Chin Tong.

The new campus in Kulim will start delivering high-end Integrated Circuit (IC) Substrates for AMD’s data centre processors towards end of this year.

AT&S board member and executive vice president for business unit microelectronics, Ingolf Schroeder affirmed the company’s decision to invest in Malaysia.

“Our strategic decision in 2021 to choose Malaysia for our first facility in Southeast Asia was absolutely correct, so far we invested just over EUR1 billion in our AT&S Campus in the KHTP.

“We benefit from the excellent conditions here and Kedah as the technology hotspot in this region,” he said.

AT&S’ biggest investment outside Austria has strengthened Malaysia’s position as an international hub for the electronics and semiconductor industry.

Schroeder added that the Kulim Campus plant will commence operations with 2,500 employees under the first phase as the construction of the second phase in ongoing.

“With the AT&S investment in Malaysia, we are creating thousands of high-tech jobs in the region, almost 2,500 until the end of this year.

“This will help to set up the framework for future growth in Malaysia,” he added.

AT&S Malaysia will produce cutting-edge IC Substrates, which are an integral part of high-performance data processors for computers, datacentres and Al-infrastructure.

“AT&S has steadfastly kept its commitment to us and punctually delivered a plant that fully meet AMD’s expectations. We are convinced that AT&S is a perfect additional source of high-quality IC Substrates for our data centres,” said AMD corporate vice president for manufacturing, Scott Aylor.

Meanwhile, in his speech, Liew warmly welcomed AT&S and its positive impact on the local economy to Malaysia.

He also praised the forward-looking concept of the AT&S campus which is built to the highest standards of quality and sustainability, with state-of-the-art machinery, recycling systems and a green energy concept.

Austrian Ambassador to Malaysia and Brunei, Andreas Launer remarked that the AT&S investment in KHTP marked a historic high point of economic cooperation between Austria and Malaysia.

“With the opening of AT&S’s impressive production site, economic cooperation between Austria and Malaysia is reaching a historic high point.

“I am confident that the company’s strong presence in Malaysia will give important impetus to our bilateral relations and will create many new opportunities to work closer together also in other fields such as higher education, vocational training or the development of new technologies.

“I hope that this investment will also put Austria in the spotlight of Malaysian companies as a great business location and tech partner in the heart of Europe.”

Source: NST

First phase RM8.5 billion AT&S Kulim plant opens for operation

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Southeast Asia will account for 10 per cent of Asia’s total solar capacity by 2030, encompassing ground-mounted, rooftop and global floating photovoltaic (FPV) installations, mirroring the broader Asian region’s dominance of the global FPV market, according to research by Rystad Energy.

The Norwegian energy research and business intelligence company said countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand are well-positioned to be at the forefront of this growing trend, using FPV to increase clean energy generation capacity.

Operational FPV projects in Southeast Asia currently amount to around 500 megawatts (MW) altogether, and an anticipated 300 MW of FPV capacity is expected to be added across Southeast Asia in early 2024 alone, according to Rystad Energy’s data.

Its head of Asia renewables and power research, Jun Yee Chew, said FPVs had emerged as a game-changer for Southeast Asia, catalysing the region’s push towards clean energy by maximising its abundant solar resources and overcoming limited land availability.

“Their modular design allows for integration with existing hydropower dams and unlocks tremendous opportunities for hydropower-rich nations like Laos, Thailand and Indonesia.

“Additionally, with land rights a major deterrent facing solar developers in Southeast Asia, as much of the land is used for agriculture, FPVs provide a solution for the coexistence of solar farms and agriculture,” he said.

Rystad Energy said solar photovoltaic capacity additions were poised to be a central pillar of Southeast Asia’s energy future, with floating installations primed to play a critical role.

However, it said addressing land rights was a pivotal challenge for solar developers in Southeast Asia due to the predominant use of available land for agricultural purposes.

“The region grapples with a scarcity of suitable sites for solar farms, intensifying the need for innovative solutions. In particular, FPVs have emerged as a viable option, leveraging bodies of water adjacent to agricultural areas. This approach not only circumvents land access tensions but also presents a potential blueprint for other countries grappling with similar issues,” it added.

Source: Bernama

Southeast Asia to account for 10 pct of Asia’s total solar capacity by 2030

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PowerChina’s subsidiary China Hydropower (Malaysia) Co Ltd and Semarak Renewable Energy Sdn Bhd have signed a RM1.883 billion deal involving a green hydrogen project in Perak.

The project encompasses green hydrogen production and storage through floating photovoltaic power generation.

PowerChina’s Asia-Pacific Regional Headquarters deputy general manager Ye Haoliang said the project is aligned with the “ecological priority and green development” direction.

The initiative involves the secondary development and utilisation of an abandoned tin ore lake, marking a significant contribution to Malaysia’s green and low-carbon transformation, he said in a joint statement today.

The statement said the project will focus on designing, procuring, and constructing floating photovoltaics, hydrogen production units, and hydrogen storage units.

It is set to become Malaysia’s first large-scale green hydrogen production project utilising floating photovoltaic power generation.

The engineering, procurement and construction contract was signed recently by Ye and Semarak chairman Mohammad Shahil Ishak.

PowerChina, leveraging its strengths in the new energy sector, has pledged to expedite the project’s planning and construction, emphasising its commitment to aiding Semarak in becoming a pioneer in Malaysia’s green hydrogen industry.

Since entering the Malaysian market in 1993, PowerChina has successfully undertaken over 150 projects with a total contract value exceeding US$7 billion (US$1=RM4.71).

Source: Bernama

Powerchina, Semarak ink RM1.88bil green hydrogen deal in Perak

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Main Market-listed EP Manufacturing Bhd (EPMB), via subsidiary PEPS-JV (Melaka) Sdn Bhd (PJVM), has been appointed as contract vehicle assembler for Great Wall Motor Co Ltd’s subsidiary, Great Wall Motor Sales Malaysia Sdn Bhd (GWM Malaysia).

With the recent signing of a vehicle assembly agreement, EPMB has become a key player in the assembly and production of selected GWM models in Malaysia for the next eight years.

EPMB group CEO Ahmad Razlan Mohamed said the decision to venture into car assembly reflects its commitment to vertically integrate its operations.

“This move presents a prime opportunity to expand our revenue streams and broaden our business portfolio. Moreover, our involvement in GWM’s inaugural CKD (completely knocked down) project in Asean demonstrates our agility and ability to adapt to global automotive market demand.

“We anticipate a close partnership with GWM as they introduce their renowned brand portfolio to Malaysia, commencing with Haval, a top-selling SUV brand in China,” he said in a statement.

The group will initially focus on assembling and producing the Haval H6, a mid-size sport utility vehicle model, and the Haval Jolion, a compact SUV model. The agreement allows for potential adjustments to the production lineup in the future.

Anticipating a gradual production ramp-up, EPMB aims to achieve an annual output of 20,000 units by 2028. The assembly and production activities will be centred at the group’s automotive manufacturing facility located at the Heavy Industries Corporation of Malaysia Pegoh Industrial Park in Malacca.

In addition, the expansion is poised to contribute significantly to EPMB’s growth and create about 1,000 new job opportunities in Malacca with more than RM100 million committed to ensure the success of the initiative.

Source: The Sun

EP Manufacturing seals vehicle assembly deal with Great Wall Motor

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The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) of Malaysia and the Ministry of Investment of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have strengthened their commitment on advancing investment cooperation in the digital infrastructure sector.

MITI said both parties have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) today, marking a strategic partnership on the development of data centres in Malaysia, with potential projects anticipated to achieve a total capacity of 500 megawatts.

The MoU was signed by Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz and Minister of Investment for the UAE, Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi.

MITI said in a statement today that the MoU represents a strong commitment towards robust collaboration on the exchange of knowledge and expertise in the digital infrastructure sector between Malaysia and the UAE, which is also aimed at fostering greater bilateral economic and investment relationships between the public and private sectors of both countries.

MITI said Malaysia has emerged as a preferred destination for data centres in Southeast Asia, thanks to its robust digital and physical infrastructure, rule of law, as well as compelling government-backed measures and initiatives on data centre investment.

The increasing demand from regional small and medium enterprises (SMEs), MITI said, will provide the impetus for Malaysia’s growing status as a significant regional player in digital economy.

Beyond data centre development, it noted that the MoU also illustrates Malaysia’s commitment to advancing artificial intelligence (AI), in alignment with the New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP) 2030, the aims of which include enhancing the capacity of industries, SMEs and start-ups in AI and developing AI solution providers.

“Malaysia’s digital infrastructure collaboration with the UAE, with a focus on data centres, will certainly help strengthen our position as a preferred destination for digital investments.

“By being a regional data centre hub, Malaysia is well positioned to capture a significant portion of Asean’s digital economy, forecast to reach US$1 trillion by 2030.

“MITI and its agencies are determined to speed up the implementation of all committed investments so that investors, businesses and our people can quickly reap the benefits of a more robust, thriving digital economy within Malaysia and Asean,” Tengku Zafrul said.

Meanwhile Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi said this collaboration not only enhances the existing bilateral ties between both nations but also seeks to harness Malaysia’s extensive potential as a top choice for data centre locations in the Asia-Pacific region.

“Being an emerging data hub in Southeast Asia, the arrangement aims to reinforce the nation’s digital infrastructure and accelerate the expansion of its Internet economy, aligning with shared priorities and interests,” he said.

MITI said the MoU stands as a testament to the strong trade relations between Malaysia and the UAE, with significant growth in non-oil trade volume.

Currently, the UAE is Malaysia’s second-largest trading partner in the Middle East, and Malaysia is a key player in UAE’s exports and re-exports in the Asean region.

Source: Bernama

Malaysia, UAE ink MoU on advancing cooperation in data centre investments

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Given that semiconductors are now as central to world economies as oil has long been, it is time for Malaysia to build a world-class electrical and electronics (E&E) cluster in northern Malaysia, said Deputy Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Liew Chin Tong.

“Going forward, we are seeing Kedah, Penang, Perak and Perlis becoming an important cluster for the semiconductor industry, not just in Malaysia, but also the world. Today, Malaysia is already the sixth largest semiconductor exporter in the world. To me, that is an important milestone.

“But moving forward, I would like to see more collaborations among the state governments and the federal government. We should grow the E&E clusters in Kedah and Penang, and potentially North Perak and Perlis, into one global semiconductor hub. It is already there, but it should be grown even further,” he told a press conference on Wednesday following the official opening of AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik AG’s (AT&S) new production site in Kulim.

The Leoben-headquartered AT&S is the world’s second largest high-end printed circuit board (PCB) producer, as well as the world’s fifth largest sophisticated integrated circuit (IC) substrates manufacturer.

The Vienna-listed company, which operates seven plants in Europe and Asia, has been building its new plant in Kulim with a planned investment of €1.7 billion (about RM8.5 billion) under phase one of the project. To date, it has invested over €1 billion.

With the presence of AT&S in Kulim, Liew believes Malaysia is closer to making the northern region a global semiconductor hub that is recognised globally.

The idea of creating a northern corridor has always been there, he noted. “Today, Malaysia is in a sweet spot due to geopolitical tension and trade diversion. We have to do more in the northern region. To us, as the federal government, the development of the northern region is not just about Penang and Kedah, we are also including north Perak and Perlis in the cluster,” said Liew.

He also noted that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had, in his Budget 2024 speech, said that the government planned to open a high-tech industrial area in Kerian, north Perak.

Liew also pointed out that Malaysia used to be a very important high-end manufacturing hub before China became the world’s factory.

“But we are coming back to a full circle now, whereby we are given a new opportunity to become a high-end manufacturer again. I hope that very soon, Malaysia will be seen as a destination for high-end manufacturing, and hopefully, we could build a stronger supply chain in our country and the region.

“In the years to come, I believe Southeast Asia will play a very important role in the world due to the relocation of the global supply chain. We should expect some sort of vertical integration in the region, where Malaysia sits at the high-to-middle part of the value chain,” he said.

Meanwhile, Liew welcomed AT&S’ positive impact on the Malaysian economy, saying its investment, especially in the area of IC substrates, is expected to take Malaysia further into the new era of semiconductor value chain.

Liew, who described semiconductors as “the new oil”, said the industry is anticipated to grow further for various reasons, including the revolution in the automotive industry, the advent of artificial intelligence and the continued development of the healthcare industry.

“The International Energy Agency had said last year that EV (electric vehicles) could account for 18% of total car sales in the world. In 2022, it was 14%. In 2021, it was 9%. And in 2020, it was 5%. We are seeing an exponential growth of the EV industry. I believe this mega trend is likely to benefit states like Kedah and Perak,” he said.

Andreas Launer, the Austrian ambassador to Malaysia and Brunei, believes that the economic cooperation between Austria and Malaysia “is reaching a historic high point” with the opening of AT&S’ first plant and its Malaysian headquarters.

“I am confident that AT&S’s strong presence in Malaysia will give important impetus to our bilateral relations and create many new opportunities to work closer together also in other fields such as higher education, vocational training or the development of new technologies.

“I hope that this investment will also put Austria in the spotlight of Malaysian companies as a great business location and tech partner in the heart of Europe,” he said.

Source: The Edge Malaysia

MITI sees semiconductors as ‘new oil’, eyes further E&E development in northern Peninsular Malaysia

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The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti) will review the target of 10,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations operating in the country by 2025 as previously set, said its minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

He noted that until now there are almost 1,500 EV charging stations in operation but the number is far from the initial target outlined under the Low Carbon Mobility Development Plan 2021-2030.

The minister said so far the government is still maintaining the initial target, but he and his Cabinet colleagues will re-examine whether the target can be achieved or not.

“It seems that the target is quite aggressive because there are many issues that we need to address and it involves many processes and agencies such as the approval process and agencies such as the Energy Commission, local authorities, and other parties,” Tengku Zafrul told the media after launching a postpaid subscription plan for e-motorcycle ownership here on Tuesday.

He also explained that the charging station preparation procedures need to be streamlined because there were complaints from companies providing EV charging stations.

“Among the complaints received is about the approval period for setting up a charging station taking a long time. What we need to focus more is how to make it more seamless and faster to get the approval,” he added.

Commenting on the Electric Motorcycle Use Promotion Scheme rebate that was rebranded as MARiiCas, Tengku Zafrul said he had informed the Ministry of Finance (MOF) about the need to increase MARiiCas allocations.

“The MARiiCas application is very encouraging but we also need to see the approval level of the applications. We are still doing research and so far there has been no objection from MOF,” he said.

Meanwhile, CelcomDigi Bhd and Yinson Holdings Bhd subsidiary Yinson GreenTech launched an e-motorcycle ownership plan with the first postpaid subscription plan of its kind from a telecommunications company to drive the adoption of EVs in Malaysia.

Customers can now lease-to-own rydeEV e-motorcycles just by registering with any CelcomDigi Postpaid 5G plan with an Easy360 instalment plan.

Source: Bernama

MITI will review target of 10,000 EV charging stations by 2025 — Zafrul

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The Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) has set up an Independent and Special Committee for Malaysia’s iron and steel industry to review and realign its direction towards achieving the objectives of the New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP) 2030.

In a statement, Miti said the committee will, among others, assess the short and medium-term outlook for the iron and steel industry and address issues of overcapacity.

The committee will also provide guidance on policy, particularly in green steel production and new product development, to substitute imports, promote exports, and evaluate industry matters linked to national security.

Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Aziz said the establishment of this independent committee is to ensure the resilience and sustainability of the country’s iron and steel industry.

“What is also important is for them to explore solutions to help the industry keep abreast of the latest green manufacturing technologies, to be in line with Malaysia’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

“Execution is key, and timing is of the essence. As such, I have requested the committee to present their comprehensive study on Malaysia’s iron and steel industry within six months,” he said.

HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd chief executive officer Datuk Omar Siddiq has been appointed as the committee’s chairman and will be supported by Prof Dr Ong Kian Ming, Datuk Hisham Hamdan, Yeoh Wee Jin, and Chen Li-Kai, while Jarrod Lim Keng Yow has been appointed as the secretary to the committee.

Source: Bernama

Ministry sets up independent, special committee for iron and steel industry

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The Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) has assured that it will assist Perlis to further boost the investment sector regardless of political differences for the development of the state so that it contributes to the economic development of the country.

Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong said the ministry viewed Perlis as a huge potential in the field of the border economy, involving the halal product industry as well as the semiconductor sector that can increase investments in the state.

“Our halal products are recognised and accepted by Muslims all over the world including Southern Thailand and this I think is an advantage. I hope Miti and especially the Halal Development Corporation (HDC) can assist Perlis,” he told reporters after paying a courtesy call on Perlis Menteri Besar Mohd Shukri Ramli at the State Legislative Assembly Complex today (January 23).

On the semiconductor industry, Liew said that the engineering and electricity technology faculty as well as the electronics technology and engineering faculty at the Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP) provide the state with an advantage in developing the semiconductor industry.

There is already cooperation between (semiconductor) companies in Penang and in Kulim with Perlis, especially in Chuping.

“There is potential if there is cooperation between the semiconductor companies and by using the advantages of UniMAP, the semiconductor (industry) opportunity is quite bright for Perlis,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mohd Shukri describes the meeting with Liew as interesting with Liew suggesting the state government increase investments in Perlis.

Source: Bernama

MITI gives assurance to help Perlis boost investment sector

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