Worldwide at the core of Selangor’s green mandate

PETALING JAYA: Worldwide Holdings Bhd is one of the more active groups involved in the country’s renewable energy (RE) space.

The wholly-owned subsidiary of Selangor State Development Corp or PKNS that was privatised back in 2008, has since taken on the role of furthering the Selangor state’s green mandate.

Worldwide is at the tail end of building a 52 megawatts (MW) waste-to-energy plant, and planning a 300MW floating solar project that it recently won under the fifth large-scale solar (LSS5) programme as well as dabbling in a pilot green hydrogen initiative – all within Selangor.

Group chief executive officer and executive director Datin Paduka Norazlina Zakaria told StarBiz the company’s push into renewables is not purely profit-driven, but part of Selangor’s broader sustainability blueprint under the Selangor Agenda for Green Economy (Sage).

“As a state-linked company, our duty is not just to make profit. We are mandated by the state to further the Sage agenda,” she said.

The company’s newest foray, through its subsidiary Worldwide Energy Development Sdn Bhd, is perhaps its most ambitious – to develop a 2MW green hydrogen production hub alongside its existing 5.1MW hydropower plant in Batang Kali.

The hydrogen plant will use the RE from the hydropower plant, which began its operations last December.

Green hydrogen is much sought after as it is produced using RE sources. It is however an expensive endeavour and this has held back its production globally.

The green hydrogen project, which is only at a memorandum of understanding or MoU stage, involves two other parties – industrial gas specialist Kelington Group Bhd via its wholly-owned subsidiary Ace Gases Sdn Bhd, and bus manufacturer SKS Coachbuilders Sdn Bhd.

Worldwide Energy will provide the land and RE from its Batang Kali plant, while Kelington will spearhead the development of the green hydrogen electrolyser plant.

SKS will lead downstream integration by rolling out fuel cell electric vehicle buses and establishing refuelling stations.

This partnership is in line with the state-level initiative, Selangor Hydrogen Oriented Resources (Shore) that was launched last year. Expected to be completed by 2040 and executed in four phases, Shore aims to develop a full-scale hydrogen ecosystem covering production, storage, transportation and distribution to support Selangor’s green economy ambitions.

Commenting on the project, Norazlina said it will take about a year before more formal agreements will be finalised.

She added while Selangor’s hydrogen initiative sounds ambitious, the launching of Sage reflects the state’s commitment to accelerate hydrogen readiness and renewable integration.

“Our journey with hydrogen began with our landmark project, 1,200 combined cycle gas turbine Pulau Indah Power Plant (PIPP).

“This is the largest power plant project undertaken by Worldwide Holdings. PIPP is also future ready, designed with turbines capable of operating a 50:50 hydrogen and natural gas blend or mixture.

“This demonstrates that Worldwide Holdings’ power asset is compatible and aligned with the National Energy Transition Roadmap and Hydrogen Economy and Technology Roadmap,” Norazlina said.