PUTRAJAYA, Jan 4 – The federal government has agreed to a phased handover of regulatory power on Sabah’s electricity supply and Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) to the state government, said the Ministry of Energy Transition and Public Utilities.
“This decision is part of the federal government’s effort to honour the Malaysia Agreement 1963,” said the ministry in a statement today.
Phase one involving regulatory control over the state’s power supply came into effect yesterday, Jan 3, while the second phase involving SESB is expected to be completed in 2030.
“This transfer of regulatory power will enable Sabah to plan and implement the development of power supply in the state independently,” the ministry said.
It said the federal government is also prepared to work with and guide the Sabah government if needed.
“With this handover, it is hoped that the Sabah state government will always be committed to tackling the power disruption issue in the state and also meeting the increase in demand,” it said.
On Oct 13, 2023, while tabling Budget 2024, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the Finance Minister, said the federal and Sabah state governments had reached agreement on the handover of regulatory control of power supply, to be effected on Jan 3 this year.
Anwar said although Sabah has been given the reins, the federal government is still prepared to assist the state in strengthening its power supply industry by continuing to subsidise SESB until the completion of the SESB Transformation Plan in 2030.
