Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar, a global clean energy leader, have gone ahead and announced their first project in Malaysia with the signing of a power purchase agreement – PPA so as to develop a 200-megawatt – MW floating solar photovoltaic – PV project at the Chereh Dam in Pahang State.
The project is going to be developed by a consortium that is led by Masdar, along with Citaglobal as well as Tiza Global, the Malaysian partners. The PPA got inked with the national utility company of Malaysia, Tenaga Nasional Berhad.
Once completely functional, the 200 MW Chereh Dam plant is going to become the largest floating solar project based out of Southeast Asia. Occupying almost 950 acres, the Chereh Dam plant is going to have a generation capacity of over 300 MWp or 200 MWac, which is enough to power the equivalent of more than 100,000 homes. The project value is going to be over RM850 million, which is equivalent to US$208 million.
The investment goes on to reinforce the position of Masdar as a key partner when it comes to accelerating the energy transformation in Malaysia. Apparently, the country has targeted growing the share of renewables when it comes to its national energy mix to 35% by the end of the decade, and floating solar is anticipated to play a major role when it comes to attaining these goals.
The Chief Executive Officer at Masdar, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, said that this landmark project, which is their largest floating solar project across the world and their inaugural project in Malaysia, reaffirms the expertise of Masdar when it comes to floating solar as well as their position of being a trusted partner throughout the region. By making utmost use of their experience when it comes to delivering utility-scale solutions across the world, they can offer affordable and also secure clean energy solutions to the Malaysian people. He added that they look forward to working closely with Citaglobal and Tiza Global, as well as the Government of Malaysia, in order to enable the delivery of the ambitious renewable energy roadmap that has been planned for the country.
The Executive Chairman and President of Citaglobal Berhad, Tan Sri Dr. Mohamad Norza Zakaria, opined that this project goes on to reflect Citaglobal’s role of being a long-term Malaysian partner in terms of delivering sustainable energy infrastructure. Through combining the global expertise of Masdar with the strong local execution capability of
Citaglobal, as well as an institutional understanding, this partnership builds confidence that the Chereh floating solar project is going to be delivered to the highest global standards, while at the same time strengthening the energy security as well as long-term economic resilience of Malaysia.
Notably, the project was secured by way of a competitive tender process as per Malaysia’s Large Scale Solar (LSS) Cycle 5+ program, having the global network of Masdar and supply chain partnerships that are key to the consortium’s bid so as to achieve L1, the lowest tariff when it comes to the floating solar category. The award goes on to reflect the proven credentials of Masdar when it comes to developing floating solar PV throughout the region, which includes the 145 MW Cirata Floating PV Plant located in Indonesia’s West Java.
It is well to be noted that the Chereh floating solar plant is going to be the inaugural project of the 10-gigawatt – GW renewable energy roadmap that was agreed upon between Masdar as well as the Malaysian Investment Development Authority – MIDA in 2023. Masdar is also going ahead and progressing a feasibility study for a major floating solar installation at Murum Reservoir located in Sarawak, which is in collaboration with Sarawak Energy as well as Gentari. This project is most likely to further boost the renewable capacity of Malaysia and also support major national strategies, which include the National Energy Transition Roadmap along with the New Industrial Master Plan 2030.
A key pillar of the project is the commitment made by Masdar to working closely with the Malaysian authorities as well as local stakeholders all across the development, construction, and operation phases. These partnerships, like the Site Agreement signed along with Pahang Water & Energy Resources, are put in place to ensure a seamless implementation, robust local integration, and long-term continuity that goes beyond the commercial operation date (COD), hence reinforcing the role of the project as a durable national asset.
The project is going to roll out state-of-the-art floating solar technology, which is specifically designed to address the distinct shape as well as the characteristics of the Chereh Dam, optimizing its performance, its resilience, and also its long-term functional efficiency. The development is going to be financed by way of a non-recourse project finance structure that will have participation from international lenders, hence reflecting the strong market confidence within the fundamentals of the project.
It is worth noting that floating solar PV goes on to offer a land-efficient and scalable energy solution that is suited to water-rich and densely populated countries such as Malaysia. Floating solar systems go on to increase the generation efficiency by way of natural cooling, while at the same time, reducing the evaporation and also preserving the freshwater.
With a global portfolio that’s expanding across over 40 countries and with a mandate to roll out over 100 GW of clean energy capacity by the end of the decade, Masdar continues to drive the scalable projects that deliver affordable clean energy and also align with the national development objectives.
