JOHOR BAHRU : FOMCA : Move to reduce fossil fuel usage

JOHOR BARU: Efforts to reduce fossil fuel usage by 20% and green house gasses by 45% has got the government looking to the sun for clean, green and renewable energy solutions.The government hopes to meet these numbers by 2025 through the use of readily available renewable energy sources, like wind and the ever-abundant solar energy.Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry’s under-secretary Wong Tin Song said this was a significant increase from the previous renewable energy target.“In 2017, the government set a target to the power sector to utilise 2% of renewable energy, ” he said in his speech at the Conference on Energy Efficiency held at Berjaya Waterfront Hotel Johor Baru.“To achieve this, we need to increase the amount of solar energy in our total electricity generated, ” he said, adding that currently solar power makes up 6.6% of the total energy supply.

Wong also mentioned that energy efficiency plays an important role in transforming the energy system in Malaysia.“Reducing the demand for electricity is the least expensive approach to meet our goals, ” he said, adding that the government was working together with NGO’s like the Federation of Malaysian Consumer Association (Fomca).

Fomca chief executive officer Datuk Dr Paul Selvaraj, who attended the conference, said that educating the community was the best step towards energy efficiency.“Every year we visit 60 schools all over Malaysia and give them insights on ways to reduce power consumption.“After about four months, we will visit the schools again and find out how much energy they have saved and the school with the highest reduction receives a RM3,000 prize, ” he said, adding that some schools have seen a 60% decrease in energy usage.

Tenaga Nasional Johor customer service head (retail division) Datuk Baderul Sham Saad said conferences like these, together with the efforts to spread awareness, were welcomed by the state government.“Every year we see an increase of electricity usage by three to four percent in Johor, ” he said.“The new technology can reduce the usage of electricity, such as energy efficient appliances, smart meters and mobile applications.“The smart meter and myTNB app will help consumers monitor their usage in real time, and get notifications on when they can take advantage of lower tariffs, ” he said.