Today’s surplus is tomorrow’s demand

Sarawak eyes greater economic value from its renewable energy advantage

KUCHING: Sarawak plans to turn its future renewable-energy surplus into greater economic value by powering artificial intelligence, data centres and semiconductor industries while preparing for the additional electricity demand these sectors will generate.

Deputy Minister for Energy and Environmental Sustainability Datuk Dr Hazland Abang Hipni said Sarawak’s next phase of energy development would focus not merely on producing more electricity, but on building higher-value economic activities around its renewable-energy advantage.

“The real opportunity is not simply to have energy to spare. The opportunity is to use that energy to create greater economic value for Sarawak,” he said during a session titled “The Next Phase of Sarawak’s Renewable Energy Surplus” at IDECS 2026 at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) on Monday.

Dr Hazland, however, stressed that the larger energy surplus envisaged by the state had yet to materialise.

Sarawak’s generation capacity increased from 1,348MW in 2010 to 5,898MW in 2025, with the state targeting 10,000MW by 2030 and a further 5,000MW thereafter.

“The real surplus will only happen after that, after 2030, when we upscale our electricity power generation to another 5,000 megawatts,” he said.

He said additional generation towards 2030 would come from several sources, including solar, run-of-river or cascading hydropower projects and combined-cycle gas generation.

Sarawak has an estimated hydropower potential of 20GW, while the ministry has calculated its solar potential at 30GW.

Part of the future surplus could also be exported, supporting Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg’s ambition for Sarawak to become the “battery of ASEAN”.

“The battery of ASEAN means we are going to be the energy exporter in this part of the world.

“Having an advantage is only the beginning. The next phase is about what we do with that advantage,” Dr Hazland said.

He said reliable, sustainable and competitively positioned energy could provide the foundation for Sarawak to develop a stronger digital economy.

Artificial intelligence was one area where energy and digital development were becoming increasingly interconnected, he said.

“Sarawak is therefore looking at AI not simply as a software opportunity, but as part of a wider infrastructure and economic ecosystem.”

The State has expressed ambitions to strengthen its capabilities in AI, high-performance computing and data infrastructure, while exploring the use of renewable energy to support research and data processing.

Dr Hazland said this opened opportunities to attract high-value computing activities, develop local applications and companies, and generate intellectual property through collaboration among universities, industries and government agencies.

Data centres would form another part of that ecosystem as cloud services, AI, digital government, businesses and advanced research became increasingly dependent on such infrastructure.

Sarawak is already exploring green digital infrastructure, including renewable energy-powered data centres.

However, Dr Hazland said that success in attracting such investments would itself drive electricity consumption.

“The anticipated renewable-energy surplus therefore could not be regarded as unlimited.

“Today’s surplus can become tomorrow’s demand,” he said.

This meant Sarawak had to be selective about the industries it sought to attract.

“The next phase is not simply about attracting more investment.

“It is about attracting the right investment, planning the infrastructure around it, and ensuring that growth remains sustainable,” he said.