Malaysia’s biggest solar firm sees jump in demand amid Iran war

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian firm Solarvest Holdings is looking to speed up delivery of its large-scale projects to meet a rise in demand for renewables as the Iran war drives up the cost of fossil fuels.

“If a project takes 18 to 24 months to deliver, we need to talk to regulators on how we can execute faster, maybe from 12 to 16 months,” Solarvest chief executive Davis Chong said in an interview on April 14. 

Solarvest, Malaysia’s biggest solar firm, builds large-scale capacity to feed into the country’s grid, as well as corporate renewable energy projects via direct offtake agreements.

The company is adding around 1.3 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity in 2026 and at least another 5GW by end-2028, according to information on Solarvest’s website.

It is planning to deploy large-scale solar projects for grid operator Tenaga Nasional from 2027. 

Datuk Chong expects fossil fuel-backed energy bills for industries to rise further in the second half of 2026, boosting interest in solar. 

Solar panel and battery prices will remain stable to lower over the same period as supply routes from China are not directly impacted by the war, he said.

Panel prices are currently around 11 US cents (14 Singapore cents) per watt, while battery prices are around US$100 per kilowatt-hour, but are “fast catching up” with prices in China that are between US$60 and US$80, Mr Chong said.

The head of another Malaysian solar developer said inquiries had risen by at least 40 per cent in April, driven by data centre and semiconductor supply chain companies seeking to build solar capacity.  

“For our industry, the higher the energy costs are, the faster the return of investments, so it makes more and more financial sense,” said Mr Cliff Siaw, chief executive of Progressture Power. 

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof said on April 14 that the country had reached 12GW of renewable energy capacity in 2025.

Malaysia, one of Asia’s fastest-growing data centre hubs, is a net energy exporter, but imports half of its domestic fuel needs, and a portion of its gas requirements. BLOOMBERG