As data centre power share heads for 21pc, Putrajaya moves to avoid ‘phantom demand’ hogging Malaysia’s grid

The Malaysian government has introduced new regulations requiring data center operators in Peninsular Malaysia to submit 10-year energy projection plans and secure binding agreements with Tenaga Nasional Berhad, aiming to curb speculative power capacity hoarding.

The policy necessitates strict evaluations of actual energy consumption and phased grid access, combating "phantom demand" and improving alignment between contracted and real-world usage.

As data center electricity consumption is projected to triple by 2030, the regulations encourage operators to utilize green energy options and develop on-site power sources.

However, details on enforcement and penalties for unmet projections remain unspecified.

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 4 — Data centre operators seeking grid connection in Peninsular Malaysia must now submit 10-year staggered energy projection plans and execute binding commercial pacts with Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), as the federal government clamps down on speculative developers hoarding power capacity.

The regulatory conditions were detailed in a written parliamentary reply by the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation to Rompin MP Datuk Abdul Khalib Abdullah, who questioned the mounting electricity and water footprints of hyperscale computing facilities on domestic reserve margins.

Under the framework, grid access approvals now hinge on strict technical evaluations assessing actual load matching and localized transmission capacity. Rather than granting bulk allocations upfront, the government is releasing grid access in phases governed by binding Electricity Supply Agreements (ESA) to eradicate what the ministry termed “phantom demand”, referring to artificial capacity bookings that inflate reserve commitments without translating into operational consumption.

Official data highlights a widening disconnect between contracted grid allocations and real-world utilization. As of August 2026, contracted data centre capacity stood at 2,346 megawatts (MW), yet active facilities were drawing only 1,374 MW, representing 58.6 per cent of contracted volumes.

The discrepancy leaves nearly 970 MW of generation capacity ring-fenced on paper but unused in practice, though the ministry did not distinguish between standard phased facility ramp-ups and purely speculative bookings.

The power clampdown arrives as data centres claim an increasingly dominant share of national energy production. Computing facilities are forecast to triple their electricity consumption from 7 per cent of peninsular demand (10,544 gigawatt-hours) in 2026 to 21 per cent (39,289 Gwh) by 2030.

The ministry gave assurances that this expansion has been integrated into the Peninsular Generation Development Plan, projecting that the regional reserve margin will remain stable between 25 and 27 per cent through 2035 through phased renewable additions, new thermal capacity, and operational life extensions for existing power plants.

To prevent hyperscalers from crowding out domestic consumers on the public grid, the government is urging operators to tap green power through Third Party Access (TPA) under the Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS), which allows direct corporate procurement from independent green power producers.

Operators developing mega-scale campuses are also being pushed to incorporate dedicated on-site power generation, including micro gas turbines and industrial rooftop solar installations, to alleviate pressure on national baseload margins.

While the Energy Commission continues to monitor load growth alongside the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry’s Data Centre Task Force, the ministerial reply leaves key regulatory enforcement rules unresolved.

The government stopped short of detailing financial penalties for operators whose real-world energy draw falls short of their 10-year projections, or establishing formal mechanisms to claw back and reallocate stranded capacity to competing industrial users.

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马来西亚政府出台新规，要求马来西亚半岛的数据中心运营商提交 10 年能源预测计划，并与国家能源公司 (Tenaga Nasional Berhad) 签订具有约束力的协议，旨在遏制投机性囤积电力容量的行为。

该政策要求对实际能源消耗和分阶段接入电网进行严格评估，以打击“虚假需求”，并提高合同用电量与实际用电量的一致性。

预计到 2030 年，数据中心的电力消耗将增长三倍，因此相关法规鼓励运营商利用绿色能源方案并开发现场电源。

然而，对于未能实现预期目标的执行措施和处罚细节仍未明确规定。

吉隆坡，11 月 4 日讯——马来西亚联邦政府严厉打击囤积电力容量的投机开发商，因此，在马来西亚半岛寻求并网的数据中心运营商现在必须提交为期 10 年的分阶段能源预测计划，并与国家能源公司 (TNB) 签订具有约束力的商业协议。

能源转型和水务转型部在给隆宾国会议员拿督阿卜杜勒·哈利卜·阿卜杜拉的书面议会答复中详细阐述了监管条件。拿督阿卜杜勒·哈利卜·阿卜杜拉质疑超大规模计算设施对国内储备余量的不断增加的电力和水资源消耗。

根据该框架，电网接入审批现在取决于严格的技术评估，评估内容包括实际负荷匹配和本地输电能力。政府不再预先分配大宗配额，而是分阶段发放电网接入，并签订具有约束力的电力供应协议（ESA），以消除该部所称的“虚假需求”，即人为预订容量，虚增备用容量承诺，却并未转化为实际运行消耗。

官方数据显示，电网合同配额与实际使用量之间的差距日益扩大。截至2026年8月，数据中心合同容量为2346兆瓦（MW），但实际运行的数据中心仅消耗了1374兆瓦，仅占合同容量的58.6%。

这一差异导致近 970 兆瓦的发电容量在纸面上被圈定，但在实践中却未得到利用，尽管该部并未区分标准的分阶段设施提升和纯粹的投机性预订。

随着数据中心在国家能源生产中占据越来越大的份额，电力管制措施也随之而来。预计到2030年，计算机设施的电力消耗量将增长两倍，从2026年占半岛总需求的7%（10,544吉瓦时）增至21%（39,289吉瓦时）。

该部保证，此次扩建已纳入半岛发电发展计划，预计到 2035 年，通过分阶段增加可再生能源、新增火力发电容量以及延长现有发电厂的运行寿命，区域备用容量将保持在 25% 至 27% 之间。

为防止超大规模企业挤占公共电网上的国内用户，政府敦促运营商通过企业可再生能源供应计划 (CRESS) 下的第三方接入 (TPA) 来获取绿色电力，该计划允许企业直接从独立绿色电力生产商处采购。

开发大型园区的运营商也被敦促采用专用现场发电，包括微型燃气轮机和工业屋顶太阳能装置，以减轻国家基本负荷裕度的压力。

尽管能源委员会继续与投资、贸易和工业部的数据中心工作组一起监测负荷增长情况，但部长级答复仍未解决关键的监管执法规则。

政府并未详细说明对实际能源消耗量低于其 10 年预测的运营商的财政处罚措施，也没有建立正式机制来收回和重新分配闲置产能给竞争的工业用户。

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