SHAH ALAM, Sept 14 — Selangor is evaluating new data centre investments based on energy efficiency and infrastructure readiness to ensure electricity supply to households and the industrial sector remains unaffected.
State executive councillor for investment, trade and mobility Ng Sze Han said the approach was important as Selangor continued to attract data centre investments while ensuring the sector’s growth remained balanced and sustainable.
“Every new investment is assessed in terms of energy efficiency and infrastructure readiness, so that supply to households and the industrial sector is not affected.
“Electricity capacity and supply were under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government through the Energy Commission and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), while Selangor’s role was to ensure data centre investments developed in a balanced and sustainable manner,” he said when contacted by Media Selangor.
The development comes amid concerns over rising electricity consumption by data centres as temperatures increase nationwide, with the government planning to add nine gigawatts (GW) of gas-fired power generation capacity by 2032.
On September 8, Energy Commission chief executive officer Siti Safinah Salleh said data centres accounted for a record 9.3 per cent of the country’s total electricity consumption in the second week of August, compared with an average of seven per cent so far this year.
Ng added that data centres were also encouraged to adopt renewable energy sources, including solar power and federal green energy programmes, as well as energy-efficient cooling technologies.
He said long-term energy demand projections were determined at the national level in collaboration with the Energy Commission and TNB.
“Long-term energy demand projections are determined at the national level together with the Energy Commission and TNB, and Selangor also shares sector information to assist in the planning,” he said.
