Shafie: Make biomass count in Sabah’s industrialization

Datuk Seri Panglima Mohd Shafie Haji Apdal,  Sabah Chief Minister

By: Nio James

KOTA KINABALU: Oil palm players in Sabah have been implored to help Sabah’s industrialization effort by seizing value-adding opportunities with biomass.

Sabah produces 60 million tons of biomass from our oil  palm industry, and 1.4 million cubic meters from forestry all of which can be used for processing into value-added products.

Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Mohd Shafie Haji Apdal said bio-chemicals that could be derived from biomass is a multi-billion ringgit  industry and are in demand in a cross-section of industrial applications. 

“The studies are encouraging. The numbers are impressive. The market is enormous. The technologies are all there ready for commercialization,” Shafie said while urging industry players not to wait any longer to seize these opportunities. 

He was speaking at the opening of the one-day Sabah International Biomass Forum at a hotel here.  His speech was delivered by Deputy Chief Minister cum Minister of Trade and Industry, Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Madius Tangau. 

The forum was jointly organized by Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM) which is a unit under the Prime Minister’s Department tasked with implementing the National Biomass Strategy, and state-owned POIC Sabah Sdn Bhd. 

Shafie said the Sabah government is committed to achieving industrialized status by 2030, and wanted biomass value-adding to contribute to the success.

Sabah contributes to about a quarter of Malaysia’s palm oil production with more than 1.55 million hectares of palm oil. 

According to the NBS, launched in 2011, Malaysia’s biomass is capable of generating a progressive gross national income (GNI) of RM30 billion by 2020, and creating 60,000 jobs. 

The NBS also identified Sabah as the national hub for second generation biofuel. 

About 100 people including oil palm industrialists, industrial experts, researchers and bankers attended the forum which saw panel discussions on a variety of related topics from the creation of a circular economy, financing needs of new bionmass investments and challenges in biomass amalgamation. 

Tangau kicked off the sessions with one on ‘Sabah as bio-based hub – moving forward’ .

AIM’s chief executive officer, Naser Jaafar, wound up the day with a session on ‘Financing for biomass industry players’ which, among other things, touched on the unwillingness of the conventional financing industry to support new businesses based on biomass. 

Earlier in his speech, Shafie stressed on the importance of maximizing resources by alluding to the concept of a circular economy.

He believed that the principles of the circular economy would help oil palm players stay abreast, if not ahead, of the numerous sustainability criteria imposed by  palm oil importing. 

“Resource optimization is vital for competitiveness, he said. Therefore the use of biomass for energy, feed, fuels and chemicals is the way to do it.

To remain competitive and profitable, oil palm players have to look beyond just the oil, to make full  use of their biomass and turn waste to wealth.”