Feature Stories
Renewable Energy: The Key Solution for a Cleaner Environment
ENVIRONMENT 23 October 2019
Energy is the lifeblood of all societies. However, the generation of energy from the burning of fossil fuels produces carbon emissions that are released into the atmosphere on a massive scale, which accounts for more than 70% of greenhouse gases driving global climate change. There is no path to protecting the climate without dramatically changing how we generate and use electricity.
Renewables are now a mainstream choice in the energy sector around the world. In Malaysia, The Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment & Climate Change (MESTECC) has set a target to achieve 20% share of renewable energy (RE) in the national power mix by 2025. To promote the REuptake, government enhanced the net energy metering (NEM) programme, and also introduced solar leasing in addition to the ongoing large-scale solar bidding programme. In Singapore, apart from the Government’s target, the carbon tax which came into effect this January is driving the RE uptake by industry as well as the consumers. Like-wise, UK has also committed to a 20% RE target and a net zero carbon emission target by 2050.
YTL Group has an extensive commitment in RE in line with SDG 7 to ensure access to clean and affordable energy as well as SDG 13 to encourage urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by optimising resource efficiency and reduce carbon footprint and impacts on the environment.
In an extensive effort to reduce or offset its impact on the environment by embracing energy efficiency and harnessing the power of RE, YTL Group installed a total of 1.381 kWp of solar panels at various operations across YTL Group and more than 16.54 kWp has been installed for off-grid communities in Malaysia and Indonesia.
Apart from that, GENeco continue their proud history of running vehicles on low carbon and clean fuels, most notably with the Bio-Bug – the UK’s first VW Beetle powered by human waste, and the Bio-Bus – the first bus in the UK to run on biogas from sewage and food waste. Moving on, GENeco aims to eliminate the use of diesel and petrol from its fleet by switching to electric vehicles. Employees in Bristol are now driving six zero emission electric vans at three sites, complemented by four plug-in petrol hybrid pick-ups, which will be used where four-wheel capability is required. This trial will save more than 50 tonnes of carbon emissions every year, reducing the negative impacts on air quality in urban areas, which is equivalent to taking 24 cars off the road.
GENeco also produced renewably sourced bio-methane as a sustainable substitute for natural gas across their local distribution network in Bristol, supplying thousands of homes while ensuring the operation of their own sewage treatment facilities are energy self-sufficient. This is achieved by the anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge, liquid waste and edible food waste which then undergoes processing in the gas to grid plant, and produces enriched biomethane.
In addition, YTL Cement built a Waste Heat Recovery unit at their Dama Plant in China, which has generated around 65,000 MWh of electricity since 2015, resulting in the reduction of approximately 39,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. This initiative was then extended to Perak-Hanjoong Simen (PHS), where approximately 45,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions were reduced from recovering waste heat from cement production.
YTL Jawa Timur plays their role in providing clean energy through the Alternative Energy Development Programme that was rolled out in 2012, a sustainable energy for off-grid communities in Probolinggo, East Java, Indonesia. To date, this programme has led to the installation of 40 micro hydro units and 470 biogas units apart from the 78 solar panels installed, resulting in an equivalent reduction of 8,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
YTL Group has integrated environmental sustainability into our strategy and core business decisions that protect and improve the natural environment for future generation by the development of RE and clean technology. RE installations will continue to grow in the coming years across YTL Group as we are dedicated to Making a Good Future Happen.