Solar energy to be more affordable to consumers


Solar energy to be more affordable to consumers

JOHOR BARU: The Government's move to liberalise the energy sector and to promote renewable energy would make it more affordable for consumers to switch to renewable energy, especially solar energy.

Ditrolic Solar Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Tham Chee Aun said the implementation of the Net Energy Metering (NEM) and Supply Agreement for Renewable Energy (SARE) policies beginning January 1 makes it cheaper for consumer to switch to solar energy.

"Previously, when a consumer wants to switch to solar energy, he have to install the whole system in their residence which would cost a lot.

"With the new policy, that barrier has been removed and consumers can now buy energy directly from renewable energy provider like Ditrolic Solar.

"Consumers now have a choice whether to buy from Tenaga Nasional Bhd or from third party provider like us," said Tham.

Tham said the government also plans to increase the ratio of renewable energy from about 2 per cent at the moment to 20 per cent by 2025 .

"Solar energy is the best and cleanest source of renewable energy. It has very little environment impact and is the most reliable and predictable compared to other sources like wind," said Tham.

Ditrolic Solar currently have a total install capacity of 60 MW in Malaysia and plans to increase it by another 50 MW this year.

In addition, it has a total capacity of 60 MW in Singapore, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

"At the moment, under our Sun Lease programme, 80 per cent of our customers are from the commercial and industrial sectors. We plan to expand the programme to the residential sector later this year," said Tham.

He also said the cost installing solar energy system have decreased because of the global drop in solar panel price due to an oversupply issue as countries like China have withdraw certain policies on solar energy.

"We can now sell solar energy at a lower price than TNB. We estimate that using solar energy consumers would save between 10 and 20 per cent on their energy bills," said Tham.

He said with the expansion of the Sun Lease programme, the company plans to attract about 1,000 customers from the residential sector in the first year.

"We are also committed to supply 500 MW of solar energy by 2025. We are very positive with the potential for this sector," said Tham.