Solar Power in Malaysia

And while the US’ fearless leaders in Washington are doing their best to undermine renewable technologies, activists and the government in Malaysia are working to make solar power more affordable and more common, according to this article from The Star.

Solar energy advocate Ahmad Hadri Haris is hopeful that Malaysian property developers will warm up to the idea of developing solar townships, much like Solarsiedlung in Germany and Nieuwland in the Netherlands.

“PVs can be included in new housing developments as a new marketing ploy. Such projects can gain developers a niche market as well as add value to the property,” says the technical adviser to the Malaysia Energy Centre.

He believes the cost of photovoltaic (PV) systems would not be felt since it would have been added to the total property price.

And while the private sector thinks about solar power, the Malaysian government is moving full-steam ahead:

The Energy, Water and Communications Ministry is moving ahead to incite interest in the renewable energy.

Next year, it will launch a programme, Suria 1000, which gives the public the rare opportunity of generating their own solar power. Based on similar projects in Europe and Japan, the project will offer building-integrated PV (BIPV) systems at discounted prices to make the technology accessible and affordable for the public.

People have to bid for the systems, however, because they are limited in numbers. Bidding will start at 25% of the capital price, which is about RM25,000 for a 1 kilowatt (kW) system. A 2kW or 3kW system is typically needed for an average household. The starting bid will be raised annually, to encourage public participation early on in the project. For the first of the four-year project, BIPV systems with a total capacity of 1,000kW will be offered.

So while Washington fiddles, other G8 countries such as Japan and Germany are moving full-steam ahead, and even nations like Malaysia and India are leapfrogging there way into the renewable future.

Technorati tags: solar power, green building, Malaysia

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