Malaysia’s data centres are consuming a growing share of the country’s electricity as hotter weather drives up cooling demand, with the government expecting to add 9 gigawatts (GW) of gas-fired capacity by 2032 to meet rising power needs.
Energy Commission CEO Siti Safinah Salleh said data centres accounted for a record 9.3% of overall power consumption in the second week of August, compared with an average of 7% this year.
“With the hotter weather, the cooling system requires a lot more energy,” she said at an Energy Commission conference today.
Malaysia, which has emerged as Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing data centre hub, is also gradually reducing its reliance on coal-fired generation. Economy Minister Akmal Nasir said the country will need to augment gas-fired capacity by 9GW by 2032, while the last coal-fired power plants are targeted for retirement by 2044.
The surge in demand comes as Malaysia attracts billions of dollars in investments from global technology companies, including Amazon and Microsoft, with the country leveraging its domestic gas reserves to support electricity requirements.
However, no additional gas-fired power capacity is expected to come online this year or next. Salleh said the country will instead optimise its existing generation fleet to manage rising demand through the end of 2027.
Hot weather has also affected hydropower generation, with Salleh saying hydro dams are currently at very low levels.
She added that the Energy Commission does not expect the unusually hot weather to persist beyond early September, which should ease some of the pressure on electricity demand.
Reuters
