I have blogged
about a field trip by SEDA Malaysia to Fortune 11 Solar Farm in Sepang Selangor
and as promised, I will write about Labu Palm Oil Mill in this blog post. The Malaysian
Palm Oil Board (MPOB) Palm Oil Mill Technology Center (POMTEC) is built in
Labu, Negeri Sembilan using a grant provided by the government to spearhead
research on all aspects of palm oil milling technology. As Malaysia forges
ahead with its plan to become a fully developed nation, there is an increasing
awareness on the need for palm oil mills to modernize. The day-to-day operation
of this mill is managed by Kumpulan Guthrie Berhad, allowing MPOB to focus mainly
on its efforts on research and development (R&D) area.
To ensure a commercially viable
operation, the mill incorporates proven technology with adequate space and
other provisions to facilitate research. Many innovative and state-of-the-art
features are incorporated into the initial design to make this mill the “model
mill” for the palm oil industry in Malaysia. Here, we can see a clear example
on how a corporate sector work hand in hand with MPOB to conduct research
regarding the use of biomass and biogas in generating alternative electricity
in Malaysia by making full use of abundance of resources in the country.
POMTEC
is built to provide a test pad for research and development of the cutting-edge
technologies required for tomorrow’s palm oil mill. It helps demonstrates the
application of new concepts and techniques in palm oil mills to cope with new
problems and challenges in its operation. This mill also provides training
facilities for palm oil mill personnel on all aspects of new and up-to-date
palm oil milling technology. Before we do deeper into this matter, I would like
to refresh your mind about biomass and biogas resources in producing renewable
energy.
Biomass
on one hand is non-fossilized and bio-degradable organic material originating
from indigenous plants, animals and microorganism that are obtained through its
products, by-products, residues and waste from agriculture, industrial and
municipal waste originating from Malaysia. Biogas, on the other hand is gas
produced by anaerobic digestion or fermentation of indigenous organic matter
under anaerobic conditions including manure, sewage sludge, municipal solid
waste and biodegradable waste originating from Malaysia. In both cases, these
waste materials are gathered from palm oil fields owned by Kumpulan Guthrie
Berhad and they are gathered at this mill for further process. You can click
this link if you want to review the terms mentioned in this blog post.
Current
research programs in POMTEC include trash removal, continuous sterilization,
plant-wide automation, new boiler technology, phenolic pilot plant, empty fruit
bunch processing plant, new effluent treatment technology and new
environmentally-friendly clarification process. These programs are crucial in
the R&D of the mill to ensure that the programs are applicable for other
proposed mills in the country. The bloggers were very lucky on that day because
we were given explanation regarding the operations of the mill by the officer
in-charge. We were given a tour around the facility to witness by ourselves how
the mill works and therefore we were clear about the electricity generation
process.
Ronser
Bio-Tech Sdn. Bhd. signed a R&D Collaboration Agreement with Malaysian Palm
Oil Board (MPOB) on 14th August 2009 to work towards a zero
discharge treatment technology for palm oil mill effluent (POME). A plant called
Green Technology Centre has been set up here as the research centre in
Malaysia. Ronser is the world’s leading technology in POME treatment system, up
to zero discharge because the biogas generated on the basis of 1 ton POME will
generate up to 30 m cubic of biogas which can be used for boiler and generation
of electricity. Besides, the organic sludge recovered contains potassium which
is an important element in improving the soil condition. As a result, the
sludge itself acts as a fertilizer to the soil for planting. For more
information on Ronser Bio-Tech Sdn. Bhd. you can always visit their website at www.ronser.com.my.
However,
why is the rush with renewable energy resources in Malaysia when we can still
depend on fossil fuels? Well, renewable energy and sustainable measures are
important to the country because of depleting fossil fuel sources. Crude oil
can last for about 11.8 years and natural gas can suffice up to another 39.4 years
in Malaysia. The availability of energy is important in any country’s economy
thus energy security is a very important issue which must be managed well. SEDA
Malaysia is the implementer of Feed-in Tariff program for development of
renewable energy in Malaysia. By joining this program, public and private
sectors can join to produce electric at their homes or private buildings and
sell it to Distribution Licensees (DLs) for a great price. But, how is that
possible?
Malaysia’s
Feed-in Tariff system requires the Distribution Licensees (DLs) such as Tenaga
Nasional Berhad (TNB) to buy from renewable energy producers the electricity
produced by them. SEDA Malaysia sets the FiT rates with approval from KeTTHA for the producers
and it will pay for the renewable energy supplied to the electricity grid for a
specific duration. By having access to the grid and setting a favorable price
per unit of renewable energy, the FiT mechanism also ensures that renewable
energy becomes a viable and sound long-term investment for companies industries
and individuals. This can happen very easily if consumers are registered under
SEDA Malaysia as one of the producers of renewable energy through solar panels,
small hydro power, biomass and biogas at their homes or private lands.
| www.seda.gov.my |
The
Cabinet has also agreed for the 1% surcharge on consumers’ electricity bills
that has been gazetted and collected from consumers. This 1% surcharge is
needed to achieve the target capacity of renewable energy in the long run. As
of 2013, 1% surcharge is still imposed on all electricity customers and domestic electricity consumers are only obliged to contribute if their monthly electricity
consumption exceeds 300 kWh or RM 77 a month. This money is channeled into the
Renewable Energy Fund and administered by SEDA Malaysia to pay the premium
Feed-in Tariff rate to those producers who generate electricity at homes or in
industrial companies. But as of January 2014, this tariff will increase by 0.6%
to be 1.6 % for current electricity users. This increase will also affect the
consumers in Sabah and Wilayah Persekutuan Sabah as they are charged with 1.6% of their electricity bills for
the first time. Please refer to www.seda.gov.my
for more news and information.
Alright,
that is all for today and I will be back with more stories to share to all of
you soon. Thank you for your time in reading this and hopefully I have given
some sufficient information as a food for thought here. Hopefully we will all
benefit for this increase of surcharge in the long run because we really need
to move toward greener and alternative source of energy. Take care and God
bless, and please use energy efficiently.
