Welcome Rakan Sarawak March 2005

Rangkaian Khidmat Awam Negeri Sarawak

A MONTHLY SUPPLEMENT OF RAKAN SARAWAK BULLETIN

(People, events, activities and programmes which make for a total quality-managed Sarawak Civil Service)

ISSN 1394-5726

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Renewable Energy From Biomass

Renewable energy are generated by various resources – sun power, wind power, biomass and geothermal

RM500 million worth of renewable energy (RE) could be generated from the biomass produced by the plantation and wood industries between the periods 2001 to 2020. Biomass from these sectors includes oil palm residues and wood wastes. The palm oil industry in Malaysia is expected to expand by 40% over the next 15 years, making it one of the great potentials for RE resources in the country.

The future prospects of energy prices are not likely to fall but very likely to rise due to the depletion of fossil fuel reserves and global warming impacts, which in turn makes it critical to increase the utilization of RE. If RE resources could assist in producing 5% share of the electricity generation in 2005, this would significantly reduce about 70 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emission by 2020. RE resources would also reduce the usage of depleting energy sources like oil and gas, and at the same time help to preserve the environment.

The Ministry of Environment and Public Health is making efforts in ensuring there is sustainable development and environment conservation in Sarawak by implementing an urban environmental management system in Kuching, and exploring energy production from wood wastes in Bintulu. Kemena Industrial Estate (timber-based industries) of Bintulu has been identified for the RE research.

Sarawak has a good potential for RE resources from wood wastes as the state recorded an export of 8.8 million m 3 of timber products, with an FOB value of RM5.6 billion, in 2003. The timber products encompass logs, sawntimber, plywood, moulding, dowels, woodchips, veneer, fibreboard and particleboard.

Wood chips from the timber industry
is a good source of biomass

In terms of RE resources from oil palm residues, Sarawak is wise to look into the potential here, as oil palm plantation is a growing industry. The state’s oil palm plantation had increased 40% from 248,500 hectares in 1998 to 414,200 hectares in 2002. With the successful production of diesel from palm oil and vitamin products from palm kernel, the oil palm industry is entering into a new phase of income generation for the country. Research has now found
that the oil palm trunk could be used to make laminated veneer lumber (LVL) for furniture and partition walls. According to the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM), LVL from oil palm trunk could generate an estimated income of RM2.5 billion a year based on a conservative price of RM500 per m 3 .