Stay connected with KayaToday, follow us on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news and reviews delivered straight to you.
Malaysia’s energy transition conversation tends to centre on Peninsular Malaysia, where Tenaga Nasional dominates and the national grid sets the pace. But Sabah is quietly running its own race, and the targets its chief minister laid out this week in the state assembly are worth taking seriously on their own terms.
Speaking in response to a question from Arthur Joseph Kurup of BN-Sook, Chief Minister Hajiji Noor told the Sabah State Assembly that the state is targeting a 50% renewable energy share of its total power generation capacity mix by 2035. The goal sits within the Sabah Energy Roadmap and Master Plan 2040, a framework launched in 2023 to address both immediate supply pressures and the longer-term structural shift away from fossil fuels.
Where Sabah Stands Today, and How Far It Has to Go
The baseline makes the ambition clear. Sabah’s current renewable energy capacity stands at roughly 307 megawatts, representing about 16% of its total generation mix. Reaching 50% by 2035 means more than tripling that renewable capacity in just over a decade, against a total grid that will itself continue to grow as the state’s economy and population expand.
The intermediate milestone Hajiji cited is 1,200MW of renewable capacity by 2030, which would represent around 37% of the state’s projected generation mix at that point. That figure is a meaningful checkpoint because it tells us how much of the journey needs to happen in the first half of the decade versus the second. Getting from 307MW today to 1,200MW by 2030 requires adding roughly 900MW of new renewable capacity in five years, across several different technology types simultaneously.
The projects in the pipeline are specific enough to be credible. Sabah is developing 450MW of large-scale solar, with 200MW expected to be completed by early 2027 and the remaining 250MW, currently under tender, targeted for 2028. A 200MW battery energy storage system, rated at 400 megawatt-hours, is also at the tender stage with a 2028 completion target. Storage matters here because solar generation is intermittent, and grid stability in a state with Sabah’s geography requires the ability to dispatch stored power when the sun is not generating. A 100MW wind energy project is scheduled for completion by 2029.
The two hydropower projects carry the heaviest capacity numbers. The 187MW Upper Padas and the 162MW Oriole Padas schemes are expected to come online within four years, meaning by roughly 2029. Together they contribute 349MW of firm, dispatchable power, which is the kind of generation that can run around the clock and anchor a grid increasingly dependent on variable sources like solar and wind.
The Structural Challenges Behind the Targets
Announcing targets in a state assembly and delivering them on schedule are two different things, and Sabah’s energy history warrants some caution. The state has long struggled with power supply reliability, particularly in rural and interior areas, and large infrastructure projects in Borneo face well-documented challenges around terrain, logistics, land rights, and financing.
The tender status of several key projects, including the 250MW solar tranche and the battery storage system, means those capacity additions are not yet locked in. Tender processes can extend, financing conditions can shift, and construction timelines in remote areas routinely slip. The hydropower projects, while significant, involve river systems and communities that have historically made such developments contentious.
There is also the question of what happens between 2030 and 2035. Hajiji’s statement maps out the path to 37% by 2030 in reasonable detail, but the additional push to 50% by 2035 relies on projects and investments not yet fully specified. That second phase will depend on how successfully the first phase is executed, on the cost trajectory of solar and storage technology, and on whether Sabah can attract the private capital and technical expertise that utility-scale renewables require.
The Sabah Energy Roadmap and Master Plan 2040 was designed precisely to provide that longer-term framework, signalling to investors and developers that the state has a coherent strategy rather than ad hoc procurement. Whether the roadmap translates into bankable projects at the pace required is the real test.
Why This Matters Beyond Sabah’s Borders
Sabah’s push is not happening in isolation. Malaysia’s national energy policy, including the National Energy Transition Roadmap, sets a target of 70% renewable energy capacity by 2050 for the country as a whole. Sabah, which operates its own grid separately from Peninsular Malaysia through Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd, needs to chart its own course rather than rely on the national trajectory.
For investors and businesses operating in Sabah, the renewable buildout carries direct implications. Industrial and commercial consumers are increasingly under pressure from customers and financiers to demonstrate clean energy sourcing. A more robust renewable grid in Sabah, backed by storage, makes corporate power purchase agreements more viable and reduces the reputational and regulatory risk of operating in a coal-heavy supply environment.
The 1,200MW milestone by 2030 is the number to watch. If Sabah can hit that figure on schedule, the 50% target by 2035 becomes a genuine stretch goal rather than an aspiration. If the 2030 milestone slips, the gap between ambition and delivery will widen in ways that are difficult to close in the years that follow. The projects are identified, the roadmap exists, and the political commitment appears real. Execution is now the only variable that matters.
Read More: Malaysia’s 1953 Entertainment Tax Is Quietly Strangling Cinemas and Concert Halls
