Data centres are emerging in Malaysia's Negeri Sembilan
[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia's Negeri Sembilan state is emerging as a new hub for data centres as the top market of Johor grapples with the facilities' voracious consumption of energy and water.
Two data centres are being developed in Negeri Sembilan, Bernama reported, citing the state's Chief Minister Aminuddin Harun. One will be a green data centre developed by US investors, while the other is an artificial intelligence data centre by local construction firm Gamuda Bhd, he said on Monday (Apr 28).
The data centres were drawn to the state's ability to meet their infrastructure requirements and its good highway network, Aminuddin said. Negeri Sembilan is located on Malaysia's southwest coast, and is about an hour's drive from Kuala Lumpur.
The data-centre boom is spilling over to Negeri Sembilan, with Malaysia's southern state of Johor slowing the pace of approvals amid concerns that the facilities were putting a strain on its resources. The spurt helped investments in Johor climb 12 per cent to RM48.5 billion (S$14.6 billion) last year.
Aminuddin said Gamuda will construct and develop a water treatment plant with a capacity of 67 million litres (17.7 million gallons) per day to ensure sufficient supply for areas surrounding the data centres. The state government will carefully assess future data centre proposals given their high water needs, he added.
Earthworks have already begun on both projects, which are expected to create high-quality job opportunities, increase investment and tax revenue, said Aminuddin. BLOOMBERG
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
30-05-2025
- Straits Times
Penang to start using durian tracking system to curb fraud, report says
The system involves tagging the durians with a QR code that, once scanned, allows each fruit to be traced back to its farm. PHOTO: THE BUSINESS TIMES Penang to start using durian tracking system to curb fraud, report says KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia's state of Penang has urged its durian growers to register for a tracking system to curb the spread of counterfeit versions of the prickly, pungent fruit from June 1, according to national news agency Bernama. The state plans to make the 'Track and Trace' system mandatory for its 200 durian farmers as it seeks to restore consumer confidence in the fruit, State Agrotechnology, Food Security and Cooperative Development Committee's Fahmi Zainol was cited as saying. About 60 growers have committed to using the system, which involves tagging the durians with a QR code that, once scanned, allows each fruit to be traced back to its farm, he said. The plan came about after local growers complained about the misuse and misrepresentation of Penang durians, he added. The fruit, with its creamy-like flesh and powerful aroma, is popular in Malaysia and much of South-east Asia. Malaysia exports durians to countries including China, and expects outbound shipments to rise to RM1.8 billion (S$547.5 million) by 2030, according to a 2024 Bernama article. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
26-05-2025
- Straits Times
Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam sign deal on renewable power export
The deal will involve the export of energy from sources that include offshore wind power, from Vietnam to Malaysia and Singapore. PHOTO: REUTERS KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam have signed an agreement to export renewable electricity, Malaysia's state news agency Bernama reported on May 26 . The deal will involve the export of energy from sources that include offshore wind power, from Vietnam to Malaysia and Singapore, it said. The agreement involves Malaysia's state electricity provider Tenaga Nasional and energy firm Petronas, Vietnam's PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation, and Sembcorp Utilities of Singapore. The joint development agreement exchange ceremony was witnessed by Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the sidelines of the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur on May 26 . Sembcorp Industries, the parent company of Sembcorp Utilities, said in a statement that under the agreement, the companies will evaluate the feasibility of exporting renewable energy from Vietnam to Malaysia and Singapore via a new subsea cable, wheeled in and through the Peninsular Malaysia National Grid. The focus of the joint venture will be 'on unlocking Vietnam's rich renewable energy resources – particularly offshore wind power – as a source for green electron generation and to supply clean electricity across borders', Sembcorp added. Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof, also Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, said that the cooperation is part of the Asean Power Grid project, an initiative to ensure energy security for the Asean region by connecting the power infrastructure across different countries. Singapore's target is to import around 6GW of low-carbon electricity by 2035, which is around one-third of the nation's energy demand then. This is a 50 per cent increase from the previous target of 4GW, which was set in 2021. REUTERS, THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Straits Times
25-05-2025
- Straits Times
PM Anwar bullish on regional power grid, Myanmar conflict as Malaysia hosts Asean summit
Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim said Kuala Lumpur has been 'engaging very aggressively' with others in Asean, which has built 'consensus on a number of issues'. PHOTO: BERNAMA – Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is bullish that 'very constructive' outcomes will result from the Asean Summit and related meetings that Malaysia is hosting as regional leaders began meeting on May 23, citing progress on a regional power grid and the Myanmar civil war. He told a May 25 interview with select regional press outlets, including The Straits Times, that Kuala Lumpur has been 'engaging very aggressively' with others in the 10-nation grouping , which has built 'consensus on a number of issues', including intra-Asean trade and the United States' blanket import tariffs. On the power grid, the Premier said the plan to connect 'Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore is considered done' and it was now a matter of fast-tracking the overland route as well as an undersea cable from Sarawak, the East Malaysian state that is planning to nearly triple its renewable energy capacity to 15 gigawatts (GW) by 2035. He noted that there are two separate cable routes, landing either in West Malaysia or Singapore, but 'in my initial discussions with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, whichever is earliest... we are fine with both'. In April, Asean secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn said that a regionwide grid would require an investment of US$764 billion (S$981 billion). 'I think it would certainly be more economic to have just one (cable), but there must be clear stipulations to provide clearly the power required by Singapore,' Datuk Seri Anwar said in the interview at his office in Putrajaya that was also attended by Bernama, Antara and Vietnam News Agency. A Sarawak-Singapore line would have to traverse Indonesian waters, but Mr Anwar said that even with a cable going to Peninsular Malaysia, 'there can be guarantees in the agreement what is due for Singapore'. Singapore and Sarawak have entered into an agreement for 1GW to be supplied from the Malaysian state to the Republic by 2031. Mr Anwar has been active on foreign policy since taking power in November 2022, with many observers noting a lean away from the West, as well as frequent visits to other superpowers such as China and Russia. In April, Malaysia welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time in a dozen years, and Premier Li Qiang's attendance at the inaugural Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council-China Summit on May 26 will mark a rare occasion when Beijing's top two leaders visit the same country in quick succession. As a result , Malaysia's chairmanship of Asean has piqued interest and built up expectations of tangible outcomes, especially in longstanding issues such as overlapping claims in the South China Sea among Asean member states and Beijing, as well as the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar. On April 17, Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing flew in for a closed-door meeting with Mr Anwar during the latter's visit to Bangkok, and the following day, the Malaysian Premier held online talks with the shadow National Unity Government (NUG). Although Mr Anwar had said that Senior General Min Aung Hlaing gave an assurance of extending an April 2 ceasefire that 'is important to allow humanitarian assistance to cover all of Myanmar', reports, including from the United Nations, claim that hundreds of attacks by the military government have killed 200 people in the month since the devastating March 28 earthquake. Nonetheless, Malaysia's initiatives mark the first time the regime has opened up to dialogue since the February 2021 coup that has killed thousands, displaced more than 3.5 million people and decimated Myanmar's economy. 'As UN high commissioner for human rights Volker Turk has confirmed, the junta's unremitting violence inflicted on civilians' has continued unabated despite the ceasefire, a Special Advisory Council for Myanmar made up of three UN experts said in a joint statement with former Malaysian foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah on May 19. It called for Asean to convene 'inclusive talks between the NUG' and other groups, including the junta, to secure an immediate end to all attacks. But Mr Anwar said that credit must be given for 'the fact (that) there generally is a ceasefire', which has allowed 'humanitarian assistance to flow without interruption'. 'There have been skirmishes, but each (side) claims it is violence from the other side. Our field hospital was allowed to be set up and utilised by other groups, and the senior general of the junta has tolerated and allowed that, which, to me, is a major departure from the old position,' he added. Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan chaired two meetings with Asean counterparts on May 24 to discuss the next steps on Myanmar. 'We have already met with the respective stakeholders (in Myanmar) and we know their wish list. Now, we want to present it to the State Administrative Council and wait for feedback,' he told reporters, referring to the military government. Shannon Teoh is The Straits Times' bureau chief for Malaysia, where he has reported on various beats since 1998. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
