KAMPAR, June 4 — The government is drafting the development of the ecosystem and value chain of vehicles based on hydrogen energy which is one of the agendas in the Hydrogen Technology and Economy Roadmap (HETR) by 2030.

Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Chang Lih Kang said the development will focus on the manufacturing process and energy production on a large scale while also being able to accommodate general demand.

"This project is developed in phases. Although it is starting in 2030, we have recently passed the first phase, where it involves a ‘showcase’ session or the introduction of hydrogen technology (vehicles) to the public. We want the people to understand and know that this energy can be used.

"For the second phase, we will build the hydrogen eco-system as a whole which also involves integrated development covering aspects of supply, manufacturing and demand for hydrogen itself, including hydrogen vehicles,” he said.

He said this at a press conference after officiating the 24th Asian Physics Olympiad (APhO) Programme at Universiti Tuanku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) here, today which was also attended by APhO president Prof. Kwek Leong Chuan and UTAR president Prof. Datuk Ewe Hong Tat.

Chang said that the effort to be realised is also one of the methods in helping the country reach the zero carbon target by 2050.

In the same development, he admitted that the use of hydrogen technology is becoming more widespread and that it will to some extent give competition to existing energy or fuel such as petroleum and diesel.

"This is a world trend where all other countries are trying to reduce carbon emissions including petroleum producing countries like Malaysia.

"We can’t afford to avoid it, just for now even though it is seen to be able to help in maintaining the sustainability of the environment, the cost of using it is quite high,” he said.

On October 5 last year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia was in a strategic position to implement HETR which would allow the country to explore the global green hydrogen market worth at least US$189.19 billion (RM889 billion) by 2050.

The implementation of HETR is expected to generate income of up to RM12.1 billion with an estimated contribution of between RM49 billion and RM61 billion to Malaysia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2030. — Bernama