SPEECH BY
YB DATO’ SRI PETER CHIN FAH KUI
MINISTER OF ENERGY, GREEN TECHNOLOGY AND WATER
AT THE LAUNCH OF GREENTECH : 1 IDENTITY
TUESDAY, 27TH JULY, 2010, 9.15 AM
MARRIOT HOTEL, PUTRAJAYA

Y. Bhg Dato Dr. Halim Man,
Ketua Setiausaha,
Kementerian Tenaga, Teknologi Hijau Dan Air

Y. Bhg Datuk Nor Azmal Mohd Nazir,
Timbalan Ketua Setiausaha (Teknologi Hijau Dan Air)

Yang Berusaha En. Ahmad Zairin Ismail
Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif,
Malaysian Green Technology Corporation

Dif-Dif Jemputan,

Wakil-wakil Media,

Tuan-Tuan & Puan-Puan yang saya hormati sekalian

Selamat Pagi, Salam Sejahtera dan Salam 1Malaysia.

    Terlebih dahulu saya ingin mengucapkan selamat datang dan terima kasih kepada, Dato’-Dato’, Datin-Datin, Tuan-Tuan, Puan-Puan dan Para Wartawan kerana sudi hadir ke Majlis yang amat bermakna pada hari ini iaitu:- Pelancaran GreenTech : 1 Identiti.

(Seterusnya izinkan saya meneruskan ucapan saya dalam Bahasa Inggeris).

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1.    I am deeply honoured to be here today to officiate this momentous occasion: a new identity launch for GreenTech Malaysia, which was formerly known as Pusat Tenaga Malaysia. Some of you may recall that we were here six months ago with our Right Honourable Prime Minister YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak for the launch of the Green Technology Financing Scheme, after the inaugural meeting of the Green Technology Council. A few months have passed since those events, and now we are here once again to witness another of the Prime Minister’s directive being realized. During the tabling of the Budget 2010 on October 23, 2009, our Honorable Prime Minister initiated the re-branding of Pusat Tenaga Malaysia. He called for the restructuring of the centre which would see it being transformed into the focal point for the development of green technology in the country. The rebranding of Pusat Tenaga Malaysia has been completed with the changing of its name from Pusat Tenaga Malaysia to Malaysian Green Technology Corporation or in short GreenTech Malaysia.

2.    Our Prime Minister was apt in his selection of this Corporation to spearhead his green technology vision. From its inception in 1998, Pusat Tenaga Malaysia has been with my ministry and has been pursuing green technology efforts especially in the energy sector. Of course at that time we referred to these efforts as Renewable Energy (RE) and Energy Efficiency (EE) initiatives. The Prime Minister was of the opinion that since this government administered company has already engaged in the energy, environmental and climate change matters, it would be in an excellent position to expand its scope of work to include green technology in the transportation, building and waste & water management sectors. This prudent decision by the Prime Minister to just work with an existing company rather than setting up a new establishment also indicates how the government is serious in cutting down its operating and development expenditures.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

3.    During the times of my predecessors, several government funded multi million ringgit RE and EE demonstration projects were implemented by the then Pusat Tenaga Malaysia, such as the Malaysian Industrial Energy Efficiency Improvement Project (MIEEIP) and the Biomass-based Power Generation and Cogeneration in the Palm Oil Industry Project (Biogen). The MIEEIP project saw several companies saving millions of ringgit in energy cost savings when they implemented EE projects at their sites. Some of these companies are even public listed companies such as: Heveaboard Berhad, Malayawata Berhad and Pascorp Paper Berhad and they are now strong believers of industrial energy management.

4.    Renewable energy is another area where the Pusat Tenaga Malaysia has been involved in. In fact, the Biogen project saw through a demonstration project undertaken by FELDA Palm Industries Sdn. Bhd which generates 500 kilowatt electricity. The Centre is also the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) secretariat. As the national CDM Secretariat for the Energy Sector, it plays a pivotal role in addressing the issues relating to climate change. The Centre was also involved in the preparation of the Second National Communications (NC2) - a country report to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

5.    Although, we have only just identified the building sector as one of the areas which has vast potential in the development of green technology, the Company is already an expert in this field. The team within this Company was instrumental in the planning, development and construction of their Green Energy Office. This building is one of a kind in Malaysia especially after being known as a super efficient building and being one of the first to have obtained the Green Building Index rating. It serves as a demonstration and research project and has been receiving visitors since opening its doors sometime in late 2007. The work carried out so far by Pusat Tenaga Malaysia, now to be known as GreenTech Malaysia is testament that green projects are viable and sustainable in Malaysia. It also indicates that GreenTech Malaysia with its compendium of expertise, know how, experience, information, databases, resources and strategic partnerships makes it the ideal organisation to deliver the aspirations and priorities of the government in relation to Green Technology.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

6.    The government has already tasked GreenTech Malaysia with the planning, development and implementation of green technology initiatives and programmes. The blue print of programmes such as the development of the Green Technology Action Plan, Green Townships in Putrajaya & Cyberjaya and Green Technology Labeling, Rating and Standard have been established and will be pursued with much intensity to ensure its successful implementation.

7.    I am also pleased to mention that GreenTech Malaysia is the secretariat for the technical evaluation of the Green Technology Financing Scheme (GTFS). Its small and yet dedicated and experienced team has evaluated 42 applications for the GTFS. Of this number, 33 companies representing a total value of close to RM 1 billion have been presented with the Green Certificates. Today, you will be witnessing the signing of the loan agreements between some of these companies with the banks. I must say that the execution of the GTFS is not without hiccups but I have personally met with the CEO’s of banks to convince them that Green Technology is a lucrative business that they cannot afford to forgo and they have concurred with me on this. I am sure that with both the government and the financial institutions working together on the GTFS, the scheme will become a success in the near future.

8.    The National Green Technology Policy has five major thrusts which cut across the public and also private sectors. To ensure effective implementation and coordination of the Policy amongst the various stakeholders and beneficiaries, the Green Technology and Climate Change Council was established. The GT Council chaired by the Prime Minister sat for its maiden meeting on 26th January, 2010. The main function of this council is to streamline and coordinate the efforts to drive green technology amongst the various Ministries. Five Working Committees responsible for their own key respective areas, i.e Human Capital, Industrial, Research and Innovation, Promotion and Public Awareness and Transportation respectively have also been established under the Council. I am pleased that GreenTech Malaysia as the secretariat of these working groups has brought all members of the various working committees together today for a workshop which aims to finalize the Term of Reference as well as to develop an Action Plan which will provide much needed direction and guidance for each Working Committee.
Ladies and Gentlemen,

9.    I cannot deny that public buy in is one of the most critical factors that will ensure the success of our Green Technology agenda and that is exactly why the National Green Technology Policy has outlined promotion and public awareness as one of the main strategic thrusts. What is really crucial for us to do at this stage would be to foster Green Minds via capacity building and encourage a Green Cultured society through different outreach programmes. We have started sending out the Green Technology message via the various mediums available.

10.    It is important to inculcate green practices in young Malaysians and to realize these efforts, my ministry will be working with other stakeholders in developing and introducing green topics in the school syllabus and curriculum of higher learning institutions. In fact, as a start, for this year, we have developed a programme for 13 primary and lower secondary schools called Amalan Sekolah Rintis. This programme is a one-day workshop where students are introduced to the various green technology applications and practices.

11.    Today, we will also be launching the Greentition Awards Programme. This awards programme aims to raise awareness on Green Technology practices, and to encourage Malaysians from different walks of life to embrace a green lifestyle. The programme will cater for the general public, schools, universities and members of the media. One of the awards programme within the Greentition Awards is the Schneider Electric’s University Challenge. This competition is designed to inspire engineering students at government and privately funded universities in Malaysia to develop creative and innovative proposals that can solve practical energy usage problems. This year’s theme, “Green the World @ My Campus,” tasks students with finding energy-efficient solutions that can be implemented in their campus. The aim of the competition is to educate future engineers to be more aware of energy efficient solutions and sustainable practices that can help protect and preserve our planet. We are pleased that corporate companies such as Schneider Electric are coming forward voluntarily to assist the government in our promotion activities. We will try to encourage many more companies to come forward with this sort of programmes which will be beneficial to both the industrial sector and the public.

Ladies and Gentlemen

12.    I am pleased with the progress of our plans and projects and I am hopeful of its benefits to the nation. Even my colleagues and fellow Ministers are enthusiastic with the growth potential and development of Green Technology in the country and its effect on our economy. Lately, the Minister of Human Resources, Datuk Dr. S. Subramaniam mentioned that Green Technology was among the new skills training courses being developed by his ministry to generate a sufficient pool of green skilled workers. This is in line with the efforts of my ministry as we have projected tremendous growth prospects of new projects and spin off projects with the availability of the GTFS, which in turn is expected to create around 600 green collar jobs within the next three years.

13.    Further, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry is also pursuing its green initiative for the transportation sector via its National Automotive Policy. The National Automotive Policy (NAP) which was introduced on 22 March 2006 highlights the development of related Infrastructure to promote Hybrid and Electric Vehicles as the main agenda. My ministry has been tasked with the development of Electric Vehicles Infrastructure Roadmap. GreenTech Malaysia is currently working on the development of this Roadmap. The main goal of the project is to formulate policies and recommendations that would encourage the commercialization of electric vehicles and achieve full benefits of this burgeoning industry.

Ladies and Gentleman

14.    In conclusion, I am certain with the re-branding of GreenTech Malaysia and the streamlining and clear identification of its roles and functions, this government administered company will play its role as the focal point for the development of Green Technology in Malaysia. Let us hope that there won’t be a day when resources that we take for granted now such as clean water and clean air become a scarcity. I urge you to join the government and also GreenTech Malaysia in our pursuit of making Green Technology a success in the country enabling us to create a sustainable 1 Green Malaysia.

15.    Akhir kata, saya bagi pihak Kementerian Tenaga, Teknologi Hijau dan Air Malaysia ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada Dato’-Dato’, Datin-Datin, Tuan-Tuan, Puan-Puan dan Para Wartawan yang sudi hadir ke Majlis yang amat bermakna ini iaitu Pelancaran GreenTech : 1 Identiti.

Terima kasih.