Kuala Lumpur, Tuesday, 28 April 2015 – Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp) once again joined local and international industry giants in the Biogas Asia Pacific Forum 2015 to explore further strategies to develop and strengthen the biogas industry in Malaysia and the Asia Pacific region. Back for the 4th year, the forum is Asia’s premier networking event for the business of biogas and was held from 28 – 29 April 2015 at Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
The opening ceremony saw YB Datuk Dr Ewon Ebin, the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) delivering his speech on the potential of biogas production in Malaysia, before officially launching the forum. “The biogas production and processing has set a high expectation for Malaysia to become the biogas hub in Asia and as the region’s lead biogas exporter to the global market,” he said. “In fact, the total potential market for the biogas industry in Malaysia is estimated to be RM 8.3 billion (USD 2.3 billion) by the year 2022, while the global biogas market is expected to reach RM120.1 billion (USD 33 billion) by the year 2022.”
Themed “Commercial Integration of the Biogas Value Chain in Asia – Opportunities and Challenges for All”, the 2-day conference focused on the updates and challenges of the commercialisation of biogas, such as feedstock management, anaerobic digestion and biogas upgrading, and attracted leading organisations including SIRIM, FELDA, Emirates Gas, and Indonesia Oil Palm Research & Institute. Highlights of the forum topics include “Malaysia as the Biogas Hub of Asia – Plugging All Stakeholders into the Biogas Roadmap”, “Building an Integrated Biogas Value Chain from Feedstock to Biogas Offtaker” and “Palm Oil Taking the Lead for Biogas Value Chain Creation in South East Asia.”
The event promotes partnerships and sharing of knowledge to drive innovation, growth, and commercialisation in the biogas sector, with the aim to position Malaysia as a biogas hub in the foreseeable future. With biotechnology acting as the game changer and value creator for the biogas industry, BiotechCorp is currently encouraging the commercial development of biogas in Malaysia through several initiatives and flagship projects, including those under the Bioeconomy Transformation Programme (BTP).
“As the nation moves towards adopting renewable energy and environmental sustainability, biogas will play a crucial role in driving Malaysia’s bioeconomy agenda forward, subsequently realising our aspirations in becoming a sustainable and developed nation,” said BiotechCorp’s Chief Executive Officer, Dato’ Dr. Mohd. Nazlee Kamal. “With bioeconomy providing value addition to the biogas industry, it is expected that biogas will contribute RM20.2 billion to Malaysia’s bioeconomy by 2020.”
Dato’ Nazlee added that the Biogas Asia Pacific Forum 2015 acts as the perfect avenue to intensify Malaysia’s global visibility within the biogas sector, while raising awareness on its commercial opportunities to encourage participation of industry players and entrepreneurs in the bio-based industry.
According to the Project Director and BiotechCorp’s Senior Vice President of BioIndustrial En. Zainal Azman Abu Kasim, this year’s Biogas Pacific Forum drew around 400 participants from 27 countries including from Germany, Netherlands, Indonesia and Vietnam, with a majority representing the palm oil mills sector. The event also attracted government agencies and ministries to increase coordination and cooperation between Asia Pacific’s various policies and programmes to accelerate the biogas sector in the right direction.
The event also saw 4 exchanges of documents related to the development of biogas initiatives in Malaysia, as witnessed by Datuk Dr Ewon Ebin, YB. Datuk Bung Moktar Radin, Member of Parliament, Kinabatangan and Chairman of Felcra Berhad, and Dato’ Dr. Ali Askar, Chief Operating Officer of Sustainable Energy Development Authority Malaysia (SEDA). The exchanges were made between Gas Malaysia Berhad and Sime Darby Offshore Engineering Sdn Bhd; Megagreen Energy Sdn Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Berhad; Megagreen Energy Sdn Bhd and Felcra Berhad; as well as Green & Smart Sdn Bhd with Felda Global Ventures Holdings Berhad.
Please visit BiotechCorp’s website at www.biotechcorp.com.my for more details and updates on the event.
