SEB to proceed with devt of hydro projects

0

KUCHING: Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB) is cur­rently intensifying its effort to develop Sarawak’s hydro­power potential estimated at up to 20,000 megawatt (MW).AmResearch Sdn Bhd (AmResearch) stated that the priority for now would be on the implementation of larger hydro plants, which had a lower unit cost as compared with smaller ones.

The research house ga­thered the cost to construct a large hydro plant was around RM2 million to RM3 million per MW.

However, SEB’s manage­ment revealed that it would proceed with the develop­ment of other planned hydro projects once there was a firm commit­ment for its power together with the financing required.

The research firm pointed out that SEB enjoyed a monopolistic stranglehold over the supply of electricity in Sarawak.

This was carried out through its main operating unit, Syarikat SESCO Bhd that was involved in the generation, transmission and distribution of power throughout the state.

As the Sarawak state’s utility company, the group played a major role in development within Sara­wak Corridor of Rene­wable Energy (SCORE) and the research firm added that SEB was taken private earlier this year via state-backed Delegateam Sdn Bhd at an offer price of RM2.65 per share.

It believed the move to take SEB private was part of the Sarawak state govern­ment’s larger plans to drive the development of SCORE including that of its hydro­power potential.

By being a wholly owned state-backed entity, such a move would also enable the group to gain access to cheaper financing to fund its aggressive plant-up strate­gies.

Meanwhile, AmResearch understood that the Sarawak state government had recently commissioned SEB to commence technical studies on five proposed hydroelectric dams with a combined generation capacity of 6,000MW.

The dams were at Baleh, Pelagus, Baram, Limbang and Lawas with generation capacity of 1,400MW, 410MW, 1,200MW, 245MW and 1,000MW respectively.

Near-term, the group focused on rolling-out two existing hydro plants under construction, which was Bakun with generation capacity of 2,400MW and Murum with 944MW.

The research house noted that currently in the pipeline was a proposal to build a 40 kilometre long transmission line linking Miri to Brunei in two years’ time, which formed part of the “ASEAN Intercon­nection Master Plan” with a potential supply of between 100MW and 150MW to Brunei in 2012 and 2013 and a further 50MW in future years.