Malaysia should seek alternatives to diesel fuel in light of the subsidy rationalisation exercise that has started this week, Sarawak premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg said, The Star reported.
Sarawak is now actively exploring hydrogen as a form of renewable energy, including the reduction of its production cost, the Sarawak premier said. “Find an alternative to diesel, then you don’t need any subsidy. Why should we be talking about diesel when we have hydrogen?”, Abang Johari said yesterday.
While the subsidy rationalisation for diesel fuel is carried out in Peninsular Malaysia, the retail price of diesel remains at RM2.15 per litre in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan. A similar move for the East Malaysian states would be overwhelming for these states as diesel-powered 4x4s are the vehicles of choice out of necessity, Warisan VP Datuk Junz Wong said in a statement last October.
There would be no need for petrol and diesel once the cost of hydrogen could be reduced, Abang Johari said. “That is the solution. If we are still using diesel, people will keep asking for subsidies. Why can’t you have cheap alternative energy so you don’t have to use diesel?”
The Sarawak premier added that the state government, in collaboration with Petronas had lowered the electricity requirement for the production of hydrogen, from 60 kW to 38 kW. This development aims to reduce the cost of hydrogen production by 50% and more, “significantly enhancing its viability and competitiveness as an energy source”, he said.
The price of diesel in Peninsular Malaysia has been set at RM3.35 per litre based on the unsubsidised price of the fuel, according to the automatic pricing mechanism (APM) formula for last month. The Malaysian ministry of finance released an infographic stating that Malaysia’s new diesel pump price is still the lowest in Southeast Asia, except in Brunei.
Last September, the ministry of science, technology and innovation (MOSTI) said that hydrogen refuelling stations as well as hydrogen public buses are expected to be operational in Peninsular Malaysia this year, where multiple hydrogen vehicles will be deployed for trial runs once the first hydrogen refuelling station is operational, it said at the time.
Sarawak became home to the first four units of the second-generation Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle in Malaysia in January 2023, when UMW Toyota Motor handed over four units of the hydrogen FCEV to SEDC Energy and one unit to the premier of Sarawak.
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