Zaman Ahmad

TNB Head of Corporate Ventures , Strategy & Ventures Division , Zaman Ahmad , said the company started its sustainability journey in 2016 when it introduced the Reimagining TNB strategic plan . Then , the energy player was obvious in its direction to diversify energy sources and reduce carbon emissions .

“ In 2019 , we had another refresh , and the pandemic hit . During the pandemic , the world accelerated immensely to say , ‘ Hey , we need to decarbonise , right ?’ and that ’ s why in August 2021 , we announced our Sustainability Pathway 2050 to the

world ,” shared Zaman .

“ We have two clear targets . There ’ s a half-time target : by 2035 , we ’ re going to reduce our emissions by 35 per cent and coal capacity by 50 per cent . And at the end of the game in 2050 , we intend to be net zero and coal-free .

“ The question is , how will we be able to execute it ? Suppose we do achieve what we ’ re saying effectively . In that case , our power generation will be less carbon and still be able to meet the three challenges that we always face : electricity affordability , sustainability and security .

“ Moving forward until the year 2050 , we must keep those three things in mind , the energy trilemma . By integrating this net zero target into our plan , the one thing that we want to do is to deliver the message to the rakyat that everybody has a role to play . This is just not a power generation or utility problem . It is Malaysia ’ s problem . It is Malaysia ’ s challenge to solve , and we got to do it all together .”

Emphasising technology and partnerships

According to Zaman , TNB currently has coal and gas plants within its entire fleet of power generation , where it has committed to the power purchase agreements beyond 2040 .

“ Within these plants , we ’ re looking at new and green technologies that are just emerging and eventually will become viable . So , we have coal plants and gas plants . For coal plants , we would like to be able to , hopefully , co-fire them with green ammonia . And that effectively reduces the emissions immediately within our coal plants . When it comes to gas , we ’ re looking at green hydrogen because we can co-fire it . We ’ re looking at these two solutions

for Malaysia ,” said Zaman during the International Sustainable Energy Summit ( ISES ) 2022 .

He elaborated that renewable energy was one of the key ingredients behind green ammonia and green hydrogen . TNB , as a strong player in the renewable energy arena , actively embarks on business cases and joint feasibility studies .

“ We just signed a memorandum of understanding ( MoU ) with PETRONAS . Two largest government-linked companies ( GLCs ). It is time we come together for the nation . It is about working together — how can we produce green hydrogen , potentially green ammonia , reduce our emissions and meet our targets ? The key message is we can ’ t do this alone . We have to work with partners . We ’ re looking for good partners , whether on the technology side or the business side .”

TNB ’ s sustainability pillars

Touching on TNB ’ s sustainability pillars , Zaman highlighted that the critical thing they had to think about was technology . There are many available pathways ; some technologies might work while others might not . The company should make the best decision and try the available options .

“ Another part of the sustainability pillars we must consider is capability . Within this new repowering responsibility towards the net zero future in Malaysia , we ’ ll need new skills . We reckon that most of the jobs by 2050 don ’ t exist today . It ’ s going to create new opportunities . So the words reskilling and upskilling come along , and we will be focusing on the people part .”

On the last part of the pillars , he stated that the focus would be on addressing the energy trilemma . – @ Green