Bursa: Bursa Carbon Exchange (BCX), a wholly owned unit of Bursa Malaysia Bhd, has signed a memorandum of collaboration (MoC) with UEM Lestra Bhd, a wholly owned unit of UEM Group Bhd, to pilot Malaysia’s first Bilateral Energy Supply Contract (BESC) auction under the Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS). The signing ceremony was attended by Bursa Malaysia CEO Datuk Fad’l Mohamed and UEM Lestra Bhd CEO Harman Faiz Habib Muhamad.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Fad’l stated that the exchange plays a significant role in facilitating the corporate shift towards a greener footprint by enhancing disclosure standards, streamlining sustainability reporting, and developing an ecosystem that supports decarbonisation and sustainable practices. He mentioned that BCX is the world’s first shariah-compliant voluntary carbon market, operating as a multi-environmental product exchange for trading carbon credits and renewable energy certificates (RECs) through standardised contracts.
The BESC auction, which will be launched on BCX, allows corporations to bid for green electricity from UEM Lestra’s large-scale hybrid solar photovoltaic (PV) projects, tailored to their demand. It marks the first auction under the CRESS framework, an initiative aimed at improving corporate access to renewable electricity via third-party access to the national grid in Peninsular Malaysia.
Under this collaboration, BCX will provide its auction-as-a-service platform to facilitate an open and competitive bidding process. UEM Lestra is developing several large-scale hybrid solar PV projects, including a one-gigawatt flagship project in Segamat, Johor, expected to begin operations in the first quarter of 2028. The facility is anticipated to generate over 1.0 million megawatt-hours of clean electricity annually and offset nearly 800,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.
The auction seeks to promote transparent price discovery for solar electricity and enable participating companies to enter into BESCs with UEM Lestra. It is also expected to enhance liquidity on BCX through the eventual clearing and settlement of RECs once the solar projects commence commercial operations.
Harman highlighted that the collaboration provides a new pathway for corporates to access clean energy aligned with their sustainability goals. He encouraged interested parties to submit their bids through the auction platform to secure green electricity based on their demand. This initiative aims to support corporations in achieving their ESG commitments more efficiently by removing barriers and unlocking access to clean energy in a scalable and market-driven manner.
Looking forward, Harman noted that the platform could play a crucial role in supporting Malaysia’s climate goals, such as reducing carbon emissions intensity by 45 per cent by 2030 and increasing the share of renewables in the electricity mix to 40 per cent by 2035. The pilot auction is tentatively scheduled for November 2025, with the confirmed date to be announced at the 3rd Malaysia Carbon Market Forum on Oct 15, 2025.