Sarawak takes over Bakun dam for RM2.5b

KUCHING: The Sarawak government has reached agreement with the Ministry of Finance and the Federal Land Commissioner to acquire the entire equity interest of Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd (SHSB), the owner and operator of the Bakun Hydroelectric Plant (Bakun HEP).
Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg said the formalisation of the acquisition is expected to take place within two months.
He said the takeover will be made by the state government’s wholly owned company, Sarawak Energy Bhd, a vertically integrated electricity utility and energy development company which operates two other HEPs, the Batang Ai and the Murum.
Describing it as a very strategic acquisition, Abang Johari said the deal will cost the state government RM2.5 billion.
Boasting an installed capacity of 2,400 megawatts, Bakun HEP, which is Malaysia’s largest hydropower plant, is located on the Balui River in the Upper Rajang Basin, 37km upstream from Belaga town. Built at a cost of RM7.4 billion (inclusive of financing), it was fully commissioned in July, 2014.
With its “lock, stock and barrel” acquisition of Bakun HEP, Sarawak is poised to be the nation’s renewable energy powerhouse.
“This is a major concession by Putrajaya and I would like to thank Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for this,” Abang Johari told a news conference to announce the takeover here yesterday. – Bernama