Abang Johari and Sipol (second left) displaying the mat that they rolled to mark the closing of Gawai. Also seen are (from right) Juma’ani, Sharbini, Hamed, Dr Rundi and Dr Abdul Rahman. – Photo by Muhammad Rais Sanusi
KUCHING: Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) must continue to advance and explore new products that could be marketed overseas and increase the state’s revenue.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said while SEB had just succeeded in its research and development to produce hydrogen, it must continue to strive to produce all sorts of energy and new products.
He said one of the products worth considering was fresh oxygen.
“The other day, about three days ago, I saw one bottle containing fresh oxygen called vitality air. The vitality air is being sold in bottles in China.
“It is useful, especially for people who are having asthma. A bottle of this vitality air cost over US$40 and people are buying it just to get that quality oxygen.
“I just imagine, if we can produce our own fresh oxygen from the Sarawak Energy, which we called Borneo Vitality Air,” he said at the SEB Gawai Raya celebration here today.
Abang Johari said this was not a ‘Mat-Jenin’s’ wish, adding that people had always asked why did he like to come out with weird ideas.
In response, he said they were not weird ideas but could be done.
“It’s because when you read and you know the resources available, and you know there is such thing to what we called now deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analytic.
“You have big data, the data can be analysed. When you know the DNA, you can produce it,” he said.
He stressed that the DNA analytic was the basic of the state’s future development and therefore, SEB must look at all sorts of energy products.
In noting that Sarawak had all the ingredients and the raw materials, Abang Johari said SEB could explore new products, including fresh oxygen, that could be marketed overseas and increase its revenue.
The Chief Minister also congratulated SEB, which had supplied power to Kalimantan and was currently negotiating with Sabah and Brunei.
He believed there was a great potential in Borneo as a whole.
“I do not know whether Indonesia will position their capital to Kalimantan. There were talks about them shifting their capital to Kalimantan from Jakarta.
“If they go to Borneo, it means they are near to us. If they said they want power from us we can supply to them,” he said.
He said Sarawak could work together with Indonesia and he believed with SEB’s engineering skills, they could work together with Indonesia just like how they worked with Brunei and Sabah.
He also expressed his confidence that SEB would transform itself to become one of the biggest power generator in this region.
“At the moment, we are the biggest in terms of clean energy because of hydro and the energy,” he added.
Chief Minister’s wife Datuk Amar Juma’ani Tuanku Bujang, Minister of Utilities Dato Sri Stephen Rundi Utom, Assistant Minister for Rural Electricity Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi, SEB chairman Datuk Amar Abdul Hamed Sepawi, SEB chief executive officers Datu Sharbini Suhali and SEB general manager for Land and Wayleave Sipol Ambun were among those present.