Malaysia Partners UK To Launch Clean Growth Handbook Amid Climate Change Challenges, Net Zero Emissions Target Ambition

Minister of Economy, Rafizi Ramli and British High Commissioner to Malaysia, Charles Hay at the launch of the Clean Growth Handbook.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 – Malaysia and the United Kingdom have joined forces to bring about innovations and investments in the energy and manufacturing sectors to help Malaysia reach its net zero emissions target with practices to promote clean growth in the sectors, while promoting green finance and sustainable infrastructure development.

Under the collaboration, a Clean Growth Handbook has been also launched to promote clean
growth opportunities in Malaysia, while providing insights and recommendations for collaboration
between Malaysian and UK organisations to tackle climate change and accelerate sustainable
economic growth.

Minister of Economy, Rafizi Ramli and British High Commissioner to Malaysia, Charles Hay officiated the launch, said a statement recently issued by Arup, a global sustainable development consultancy, and co-producer of the book.

Commending the collaboration, Rafizi said: “The UK is a shining example for Malaysia to emulate in this sector. From 1990 to 2019, while Malaysia’s GDP increased by 389 percent and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions rose by 289 percent, the UK successfully reduced its emissions by 43 percent while growing its economy by two-thirds.

For illustration purpose -file photo of an electric vehicle recharging its battery. Malaysia has pledged to reduce its carbon intensity by 45 percent by 2030. To realise this, Malaysia has rolled out the National Energy Policy 2022-2040 that intends to fundamentally transform its primary energy supply to move away from coal to cleaner sources.

“Malaysia’s aspiration is to be a net zero country by 2050, the same year the Malaysian economy is
expected to triple in size. Malaysia has also unconditionally pledged to reduce its carbon intensity by
45 percent by 2030. To realise this, Malaysia has rolled out the National Energy Policy 2022-2040 that intends to fundamentally transform our primary energy supply to move away from coal to cleaner sources, while managing an optimal trade-off of the energy trilemma of security, affordability, and
sustainability.”

Charles Hay said the UK has been able to support Malaysia’s climate ambition and just transition, through delivery of a wide range of projects cutting across energy, transport, green finance and many other thematic areas.

“Our 2022 bilateral Climate Partnership MoU demonstrates our commitment to continue to work closely with Malaysia to address environmental challenges, through policy, trade and diplomacy.”

The handbook, commissioned by the British High Commission Kuala Lumpur, identifies collaboration opportunities with UK companies that can provide valuable expertise and insights for Malaysian organisations. It also evaluates the UK’s clean growth journey and ecosystem, highlighting areas where the UK’s expertise can complement Malaysia’s efforts to advance the agenda.

The handbook focuses on four priority sectors – power, transport, buildings, and manufacturing – that
have the potential to influence large scale change on the economy and environment due to their higher greenhouse gas emissions and gross added value contributions.

The book also provides market overviews and growth opportunities in key subsectors, with experiences drawn from significant collaborations between the UK ans Malaysia including their partnership on Accelerated Climate Transitions Programme, Low Carbon Energy and Future Cities Programmes, the launch of the centralised sustainability platform by Bursa Malaysia and the London Stock Exchange, and the exploration of carbon capture, and storage clusters in Malaysia by PETRONAS and Storegga.

“While there are many clean growth opportunities to pursue, the right enabling environment must be
provided to support uptake by the private sector. Nine enablers for clean growth have been identified.
For each enabler, the state of play in Malaysia is explored together with areas for further development,” the statemen said.

Jennifer Lopez, Chief Executive Officer of the British Malaysian Chamber of Commerce, praised the
initiative, saying, “By presenting unique opportunities for investors looking to enter the clean growth market in Malaysia, the report’s recommendations can help Malaysia achieve its net zero goals, making it an attractive investment destination for those looking to invest in sustainable economic growth. By working together, the UK and Malaysia can drive innovation and develop new solutions to build a cleaner, greener future for both countries and the world.”
–WE