KUCHING: Sarawak can now share its renewable and digital expertise across ASEAN through partnerships, training, and technology transfer as the state strengthens its role as a regional leader in sustainable growth, says Utility and Telecommunication Minister, Datuk Seri Julaihi Narawi.
He said Sarawak’s renewable energy backbone and policy stability are fuelling new regional opportunities in data, hydrogen and digital infrastructure that link the state to ASEAN’s green future.
“We can now share our know-how across ASEAN through partnerships, training and technology transfer,” he added.
“For example, through the ASEAN Power Grid initiative, Sarawak Energy exports renewable power to West Kalimantan via a 275-kilovolt interconnection and is developing new links to Brunei and Singapore.
“In Baram, the DeepTech Energy Programme will deliver a 300-megawatt solar plant supported by 2,200 megawatt-hours of battery storage. This project will anchor a 200-megawatt green data-centre park, powered entirely by renewable energy.”
Julaihi said this in his keynote address for the 8th International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak (IDECS25) – Ethical AI and the Green Digital Economy: Sarawak’s Path to Regional Leadership in Utilities and Telecommunications – at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) here today.
He added that the Kota Petra Green Technology Park, led by the Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC), is driving digital integration for a 3,000-acre hub planned with a 300-megawatt large-scale solar plant and a 600 megawatt-hour Battery Energy Storage System.
“This will power AI-driven data-centre sites and advanced industries, reinforcing Sarawak’s role as a green-industry base” he elaborated.
He said these developments converge at the Sarawak Data Centre Park, where Sarawak Energy serves as the main power partner.
The park will operate on renewable supply and be built to Tier IV international standards, among the highest levels of efficiency and reliability for data infrastructure.
“Across ASEAN, the demand for green, secure and ethically managed data is accelerating. Sarawak’s value lies not only in capacity but also credibility, offering investors, developers, and governments a place where sustainability and ethics work hand in hand,” Julaihi stressed.
Julaihi noted that Sarawak’s existing cross-border power supply to Kalimantan is being complemented by new corridors, including the conditional approval from Singapore’s Energy Market Authority to import about one gigawatt of Sarawak’s renewable energy by 2035.
“Together, these projects bring the vision of a fully connected Asean Power Grid one step closer to reality,” he said.
He stressed that Sarawak’s leadership will be recognised not merely through physical infrastructure, but through its ability to enable regional growth.
“This is how Sarawak’s leadership will be recognised, not through what we build, but through what we enable,” he added.
Turning to digital transformation, Julaihi said Sarawak’s progress in technology must also be guided by ethical principles as the state embraces artificial intelligence (AI).
“Having established these strong foundations, we must now turn to the intelligence that will be built upon them. As we embrace the transformative power of AI, we do so with our eyes wide open,” he said.
“We recognise that AI is a double-edged sword, a tool of immense potential that demands profound responsibility.”
