RENEWABLE ENERGY ACT EXPECTED TO COME INTO FORCE BY JUNE NEXT YEAR

KOTA KINABALU (Sabah, Malaysia), Oct 20 (Bernama) -- The bill on the Renewable
Energy Act is expected to be tabled in Parliament before year-end, with the Act
coming into force by June next year.

Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry's Undersecretary of the
Sustainable Energy Division, Badriyah Abdul Malek, said the Feed-in Tariff (FiT)
mechanism is therefore expected to be implemented at the same time.

FiT is a mechanism that allows electricity produced from indigenous
renewable energy resources to be sold to power utilities at a fixed premium price
and for specific duration.

"The bill is now completed and submitted to the Attorney-General. So we expect
the bill to be tabled for first reading between the October and December
session," she told reporters after the Investment Opportunities in Renewable
Energy Seminar and Dialogue with Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister
Bernard Dompok here Wednesday.

"At the same time, we will also table the Sustainable Energy Development
Authority (SEDA) Bill, which is to institute the establishment of SEDA Malaysia,
the authority to spearhead renewable energy development in Malaysia," Badriyah
said.

"We expect the second and third reading in March, and the Act enforced probably
in May or June next year, so the FiT will also come on board in May or June
2011," she said.

In response to a question, Badriyah said that for Sabah, it had been estimated
that more than 100 megawatts of electricity could be obtained from variable
sources such as biomass, biogas and also solar energy.

Concerning the dialogue, Dompok said majority of the 70 participants present
from the palm oil industry were waiting for implementation of the Act to see the
tariff revised, as the present tariff of 21 sen per unit was considered low.

"That's the general view. The government, of course, will be prepared to look at
the increase. But in this area, I am not going to say much more than that
because the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry will make the necessary
announcement," he said.

Dompok said the outcome of today's dialogue also recognised that the oil palm
industry could not replace the electricity production from Sabah Electricity Sdn
Bhd but it was important to look into renewable energy opportunities to meet the
challenges of electricity supply in the state.
-- BERNAMA