SABAH Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) said it would install a battery energy storage system with a capacity of 100MW as a short-term solution to the state’s power supply issue.

Its chairman Wilfred Madius Tangau said the matter was approved by the Energy Commission and it was an important backup measure to meet high power demand during peak hours and when the supply system failed.

“Sabah is the only region in Malaysia that still implements electricity supply rationing. This is due to the low generation capacity, with a reserve margin below 12%.

“SESB hopes the Electricity Supply and Tariff Planning and Implementation Committee Sabah meeting will consider the Energy Commission’s decision for the sake of the common good,” he said in a statement today.

A reserve margin is the emergency stock of electricity, particularly for use in the event of a system malfunction or high consumption periods.

Madius said SESB planned to build a combined-cycle gas turbine generator with a capacity of 700MW to solve electricity supply problems in Sabah.

He said the generator, which would be fully owned by SESB, would be built under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

“The generation of 700MW of electricity supply will be operated using gas. This is an essential step to stabilise electricity supply in Sabah,” he said.

Madius said for that endeavour, SESB has requested Petronas supply it with gas at a rate of RM15/mmBTU.

He said he hoped Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim would include SESB’s plan in discussions with China President Xi Jinping during Xi’s visit to the country next year. – Bernama, October 19, 2023.