17/06/2025

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TUESDAY | JUNE 17, 2025

Berjaya Land embarks on housing project in Greenland o Partners Sweden’s SIBS for RM117m development in capital, Nuuk Ű BY JOHN GILBERT sunbiz@thesundaily.com

KUALA LUMPUR: The escalating conflict near the Strait of Hormuz has triggered one of the most intense oil price rallies since 2022, said Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) CEO Tan Sri Tengku Muhammad Taufik. “In the past few days, the escalation of conflict around the Strait of Hormuz where 18 to 19 million barrels of oil – or 20% of the total global supply – flow through every day, have sent prices surging in anticipation of a supply shock,” he said in his welcoming speech at Energy Asia 2025 yesterday. Tengku Muhammad Taufik said this is unfolding at a time when the world is still reeling from the US reciprocal tariffs. “Today, we convene at a time Opec to continue investing in fossil fuels amid energy transition KUALA LUMPUR: The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) will continue to invest in fossil fuel production, despite the growing momentum behind sustainability initiatives and the global energy transition. Opec secretary-general Haitham Al Ghais said the organisation advocates a more balanced investment strategy to safeguard the stability of energy security and affordability. “Sometimes we get carried away talking about net zero and energy transition. At Opec, we believe in a balanced approach. We must transition and address climate change, but not at the expense of energy security or affordability. “One of the key factors we consistently stress is the importance of continued investment, as this is a long-lead-time and capital-intensive industry,” he said at a panel session titled “Enabling Asia’s Future Energy Ecosystem” at Energy Asia 2025 here yesterday. Haitham emphasised that Opec is not opposed to renewable energy, although it is often perceived as being at odds with it. “We do not dismiss renewables. On the contrary, many Opec members are embracing renewable energies. However, we recognise that renewables alone will not suffice. That is why our approach to the energy transitions must be multipath. “There is no single pathway. We need all sources of energy and technology to complement and support one another, especially those that can help reduce emissions,” he said. According to Haitham, the oil industry requires a staggering US$17.4 trillion (RM73.7 trillion) in investment, or around US$640 billion annually. “Today, oil still represents 30% of the global energy mix. When combined with gas, this figure rises to about 56% to 57%. In terms of volume, we are seeing oil demand hit a new record each year. This year, we are forecasting oil demand to exceed 104 million barrels a day,”he added. – Bernama Ű BY HAYATUN RAZAK sunbiz@thesundaily.com

KUALA LUMPUR: Berjaya Land Bhd (BLand) is venturing into a RM117 million gross development value residential project in Green land, an autonomous territory in Denmark, part of the company’s plan to expand internationally and bring its experience in building homes to new markets. Group CEO Syed Ali Shahul Hameed said BLand is preparing to submit the necessary drawings to the local authority in Greenland for official approval. “We have already received pre approval, which means a similar design has already been reviewed and agreed upon by the Municipality of Nuuk, Greenland’s capital. “With this positive response, we can now move ahead with developing a detailed building plan. I expect that by next summer, we will be ready to begin actual construction,” Syed Ali said during the signing of a memorandum of understanding with SIBS Sdn Bhd (SSB) yesterday. He said demand from the community for home purchases is very high, reflecting strong local interest and a clear need for new housing in Nuuk. To address this demand, BLand, through its wholly owned sub sidiary Berjaya Greenland Invest A/S, has acquired land in Nuuk, aiming to provide high-quality residential apartments designed explicitly for Greenland’s dis tinctive climate and infrastructure requirements. “There is a shortage of available housing for residents in the area, so demand is high.

BLand’s broader vision of creating high-quality developments that are efficient, adaptable, and built with long-term impact in mind. “Modular construction provides an innovative and timely approach, enabling us to deliver homes faster and more cost-effectively while supporting local capacity building.” SSB executive director Lawrence Chua Sue Lin said the company is developing a modular housing project, a relatively new concept for Malaysia. In this approach, homes are prefabricated in a factory, com pleted to a high standard and then transported to the intended site for assembly. This method is highly sustainable and environmentally friendly, as it significantly reduces reliance on manual labour, mini mises construction waste, and shortens project timelines. While traditional high-rise con struction can take up to three years, Chua said, modular housing can complete projects in less than a year, thanks to the company’s current annual production capacity of up to 12,000 modules. “However, in practice, a typical project might utilise around 6,000 modules. This innovative system not only accelerates delivery but also supports greener, more efficient urban development,” he added. With a focus on transforming Nuuk into a premier destination for recreation and ecotourism, Berjaya Greenland Invest aims to foster local economic growth, address housing needs and create employment opportunities for the community. from more than 60 countries under the theme “Delivering Asia’s Energy Transition” at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. Officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Energy Asia is set against the backdrop of rising urgency and solidarity, bringing together policymakers, in dustry leaders and energy pro fessionals to align strategies and pragmatic solutions that meet the unique challenges and oppor tunities of developing and emerging economies. “At Energy Asia, we now enjoy and benefit from the participation of almost 3,000 delegates from not just the oil, gas and energy industry, but also from power and utilities, technology and logistics, clean tech and renewables as well as financial and professional service providers,” said Tengku Muhammad Taufik.

Berjaya Land group executive director Datuk Abdul Rahim Mohd Zin, Syed Ali, Chua and business development director Lim Chek Lim at the memorandum of understanding signing ceremony Berjaya Land and Sibs. – AMIRUL SYAFIQ/THESUN

launched soon. Besides making more homes available, the project will bring significant economic benefits, crea ting new jobs, involving local con tractors, and supporting long-term city growth. “Regarding the timeline for project implementation ... while we anticipate that the core cons truction phase can be completed within approximately one year, the logistics of transporting materials from Penang to Greenland may extend the overall schedule. “We are committed to a thorough and efficient approach, ensuring that all aspects of the project are executed to the highest standards, despite the geographical and logistical challenges,” Syed Ali said when asked about the project’s timeline. He said this project reflects Asia to build upon its achievements and accelerate the progress from where it stands today, as the centre of energy demand growth where opportunities are abundant. “To address Asia’s growth ambitions even as it aims to achieve net zero, US$88.7 trillion (RM376 trillion) in energy investment will be needed until 2050.” Investment and spending across both conventional and renewable energy systems continues to be required, he said. “Today we are contending with increasingly erratic market forces, surging operating costs, rising temperatures and recurring natural disasters – all demanding us to act with immediacy and adapt with agility.” Energy Asia – hosted by Petronas and knowledge partner CERAWeek by S&P Global –gathers 38 industries

“Most of the time, as soon as we launch a project, the units sell out quickly. As for pricing, it is still a bit early for me to provide exact numbers, but generally speaking, costs are quite high, largely due to factors such as the cost of materials, including metal. “However, I believe this is a strong investment opportunity overall,” Syed Ali said. BLand signed the MoU with SSB, a Sweden-based company with a manufacturing facility in Penang, a global leader in modular housing systems. This partnership aims to deliver efficient, climate-resilient homes through modular con struction – a modern approach that enables faster deployment, cost savings and long-lasting quality. Currently, the housing project is still in the planning and design stages, but it is expected to be

Escalating conflict near Strait of Hormuz triggers oil price surge: Petronas

“Parts of Asia enjoy abundant solar irradiance. Here, we see long coastlines and annual monsoon winds, which present vast and untapped renewables potential. Asia is blessed with abundant viable geological formations for carbon capture and storage – combined with an opportunity to deploy cleaner natural gas, this all points to a growth destination.” He remarked that Asia will play a central role for the world’s energy transition to be possible because in 2050 the population in Asia-Pacific is expected to rise to 5.2 billion. “To power our economies, to fuel AI adoption across all industries, to keep the lights on for our population and to safeguard our communities, this region will represent 50% of global energy demand until 2050.” Therefore, Tengku Muhammad Taufik said, the stage must be set for

when unrelenting uncertainty casts a long shadow on the unique pathways that each of us sought to travel towards our common desti nation.” Following developments in early April, when US President Donald Trump announced sweeping reci procal tariffs against trading partners, global fragmentation has been exacerbated by a new kind of confrontation, he said, adding that geopolitical conflicts around the world have intensified and meta stasised to neighbouring regions. “All of us were prompted to reconfigure our behaviours in markets and accept a new norm rife with volatility.” Tengku Muhammad Taufik said Asia’s vast solar, wind and natural gas resources present an opportunity as the world reels from supply shocks and energy volatility.