Malakoff unit’s Lumut plant resumes ops

KUALA LUMPUR: Malakoff Corp Bhd’s subsidiary, GB3 Sdn Bhd, has resumed commercial operations at its 429-megawatt (MW) open-cycle gas turbine power plant in Lumut, Perak, nearly three months ahead of schedule.

In a statement, Malakoff said the plant commenced commercial operations on Oct 7, ahead of the scheduled commercial operation date of Jan 1, 2027, under its new power purchase agreement (PPA) with Tenaga Nasional Bhd.

The GB3 plant, which was last operational in December 2022, resumed operations following the signing of new PPAs for GB3 and Segari Energy Ventures Sdn Bhd (SEV) in May 2026.

The agreements followed Malakoff’s successful bid to extend the operations of three gas-fired power plants under the Energy Commission’s competitive bidding exercise for new generation capacity in Peninsular Malaysia from 2025 to 2029.

The new PPA for GB3 will run until Dec 31, 2029.

Malakoff said the GB3 plant, which has supported electricity supply in Peninsular Malaysia since 2001, provides additional peaking capacity to meet surges in electricity demand and strengthen the grid’s reserve margin.

Together with the SEV plant, which is scheduled to continue operations no later than July 1, 2027, the Lumut power plant will provide a combined generation capacity of 1,732 MW to the national grid.

Malakoff’s Prai power plant in Penang, the first of the three plants to secure extensions, resumed operations on April 9, 2026.

According to group chief executive officer Syahrunizam Samsudin, the early resumption of GB3’s operations would help meet Malaysia’s growing electricity demand.