PHOTON International The Photovoltaic Magazine

Malaysian 1.5 MW BIPV program systems likely to start next year

In February, the Swiss engineering company Enecolo will present a proposal to the Global Environment Facility (GEF) for installing BIPV systems with a total capacity of 1.5 MW in Malaysia. The Malaysia: Building Integrated Photovoltaic Technology Application Project (MBIPV) has the principal objective of reducing the long-term cost of BIPV technology within the Malaysian market. It aims to develop financing mechanisms and economic assessment models as well as local BIPV markets. Enecolo consultant Daniel Ruoss expects the call for tenders in 2005.

The 1.5 MW program would follow a pilot project slated for completion by the end of Jan. 2004 (see PI 5/2003, p. 38). With $130,000 funded by GEF, Enecolo had prepared a feasibility study and carried out several workshops to advertise the idea of a BIPV program in Malaysia. The aim was not to build PV systems, says Ruoss, but to make a proposal for the full project. He anticipates GEF´s decision by mid-2004.

The five-year MBIPV program is scheduled to start in Jan. 2005. Ruoss estimates total costs at $25 million. While GEF will be asked to provide $4.7 million, the rest should be covered by the government of Malaysia, other donors, and the industry. A Jan. 6 article from the Malaysian National News Agency underscored the country's interest in the MBIPV program: the Malaysian Ministry of Energy, Communications, and Multimedia was said to provide funding of 20 million MYR ($5.2 million). Ruoss, however, says that the government's contribution will be around $12.5 million.

Enecolo´s proposal includes five components. The first aims to enhance the level of understanding and awareness for BIPV through an extensive education campaign. The second target is to improve the BIPV market and infrastructure development, whereas in a first step, six highly-visible demonstration systems with a total power of 100 kW will be installed in 2005. At a later stage, demo projects will be built on government and private buildings with a total capacity of 400 kW over a period of three years. Another step will be to implement a national BIPV program called Suria 1,000 with the goal of installing 1,000 PV systems on residential and commercial buildings over four years. The third component aims to develop a package of policy, legal, institutional, financial, and fiscal measures that will enable the Malaysian government to define a national BIPV target in the tenth Malaysian development plan from 2010 to 2015. Finally, the fourth component aims to develop local manufacturing capacity.