PUTRAJAYA, July 26 - The Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS) will be introduced starting this September to boost corporate access to green electricity supply.

The Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA) in a statement said that through the open grid access concept, third-party access (TPA) can supply (sell) or obtain (buy) electricity through the grid network system with a set of system access charge.

The introduction of the CRESS programme is part of PETRA’s efforts under the GREENS MADANI Initiative or Government Renewable Energy Enhancement for Niche Sector aimed at supporting the aspirations of the high-priority energy transition sector.

“Corporate companies in Malaysia should be given the option to reduce their carbon footprint through green electricity supply.

“As of now, companies can fulfil their green electricity commitments by installing solar photovoltaics system (PV) through Net Energy Metering (NEM) and Self Consumption (SelCo) programmes, purchasing the Renewable Energy (RE) through the Malaysia Green Attributes Trading System (mGATS) or subscribing to the Green Electricity Tariff (GET),” according to the ministry.

On August 31, 2022, the government also introduced the Corporate Green Power Programme (CGPP) to help companies meet their ESG commitment through virtual purchase of green electricity.

Under the CRESS programme, eligible RE generators and corporate companies can arrange for green electricity supply with the agreed terms through the existing supply system.

According to the statement, corporate companies can acquire RE electricity directly from the identified generators with third-party access (TPA) and these RE generators can also supply renewable electricity to corporate consumers through the TNB grid network by participating in the NEDA market.

PETRA informed that the implementation of the CRESS would regulate by the Energy Commission through the Electricity Supply Act 1990 (Act 447), while the Single Buyer (SB) and Grid System Operator (GSO) would act as the market and system operators respectively.

“Both entities will manage the coordination access and dispatch aspects in the electricity supply system based on the regulatory determinations agreed upon by the government.

“TNB will continue to play its role as a utility electricity supplier, consistently delivering the generated and needed electricity to users both within and beyond the green electricity supply period,” the statement added.

According to PETRA, the Energy Commission would conduct several briefing sessions on procedures and guidelines for industry players.

The implementation of the open grid access through the CRESS Programme is a progressive step towards the energy market liberalisation and is expected to reduce the risk and cost of the country’s electricity supply system while providing equal opportunities for developers to compete healthily.

The implementation of the CRESS Programme under the Green MADANI Initiative aligns with the government’s aspiration to increase the RE capacity from the current 26 percent (10.6GW) to 40 percent by 2035 and 70 percent by 2050 to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels.

The programme will reduce carbon emissions by 701,000 tCO2 per year while generating direct investments for over RM10 billion and creating nearly 14,000 new job opportunities in the sustainable energy industry.