Malaysia Welcomes Japan's Support In Accelerating Energy Transition -- Rafizi

JAKARTA, Aug 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysia welcomes Japan’s support and cooperation in accelerating the country’s energy transition journey to decarbonisation and achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, said Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli on Wednesday.

He said the national document, the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR), that aims to accelerate the energy transition was largely inspired by the inaugural Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) Ministerial Meeting last year.

“We anticipate that AZEC’s contributions will be instrumental in driving forward the shift towards more sustainable and low-carbon energy solutions which are crucial for the future of our region,” he said in a joint press conference after the 2nd AZEC Ministerial Meeting here.

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Rafizi said the just concluded meeting has achieved its objectives in further enhancing the existing close cooperation, particularly enhancing energy trilemma namely security, affordability and sustainability.

He highlighted that Malaysia, as an AZEC partner country, had revised its renewable energy target, setting a more ambitious goal of achieving 70 per cent installed capacity by 2050, an increase from the previous target of 40 per cent by 2035.

The Malaysian government has also initiated several key measures, including the implementation of solar projects on a wide scale, the establishment of Energy Exchange Malaysia to promote cross-border green electricity sales to neighbouring countries, the NETR flagship projects as well as 50 key initiatives which are currently on track and progressing well.

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The anticipated presentation of the Carbon Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (CCUS) Bill later this year will comprehensively regulate all aspects of CCUS, while the forthcoming Climate Change Bill, expected to be finalised by June 2025, will introduce critical mechanisms such as carbon pricing to address and mitigate the impacts of climate change, he said.

Meanwhile, Rafizi said Malaysia is honoured to co-host next year’s meeting with Japan in Kuala Lumpur after the recent in-principle approval from the Cabinet.

“This 2025 meeting represents not only our commitment to decarbonisation but also our dedication to establishing Malaysia as the energy hub of the region,” he added.

AZEC is launched by 11 partner countries in 2023 as a platform that seeks to further advance decarbonisation in Asia towards the goal of carbon neutrality while achieving economic growth and energy security, creating various pathways tailored to each country’s circumstances.

-- BERNAMA