Malaysia is exploring the use of pumped hydro energy storage and drawing on Australian expertise to support its energy transition. A series of three workshops have been delivered by Professor Andrew Blakers from the Australian National University (ANU) to build the capacity of Malaysian energy professionals on pumped hydro energy storage (PHES).
The Murum is a 944MW hydro power project located in Sarawak, Malaysia. Post completion of construction, the project was commissioned in 2014. The project was developed by Sarawak Energy. Sarawak Energy own the project. Buy the profile here. 2. Pergau The 600MW Pergau hydro power project is located in Perak, Malaysia. It was commissioned in 1997.
“Malaysia has vast numbers of pumped hydro reservoir sites,” he said. “Pumped hydro is the technology of choice – about 95% of all energy storage is pumped hydro, mostly based on rivers. However, there are about 4,000 potential sites in Malaysia for off-river pumped hydro.”
The pumped hydropower storage model is regarded as the answer to intermittent renewables and the need to cut the use of fossil fuels. Pumped storage works like a battery (see diagram), allowing power generated by wind and solar to be stored, balancing periods of high and low electricity demand while providing reliable energy all the time.
As a component in achieving Sarawak’s target of reaching an electricity generating capacity of 10 GW by 2030, pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) is under serious consideration, Sarawak Energy said.
The only major hydro project under construction currently in Sarawak is the Baleh project (1285MW). The project comprises a concrete faced rockfill dam 188m high, a radial gated spillway capable of discharging a design flood of 20,000m3/sec and a surface power station housing 5 turbines.