Malaysia’s Pathway to Sustainable Data Centres: Key Guidelines and Insights

Malaysia is being widely recognised as Southeast Asia’s fastest growing sustainable data centre hub. With its strategic location and access to renewable energy, land and water, this should come as no surprise. The Government is committed to the sustainable development of  data centres and has recently published the Planning Guidelines for Data Centre to streamline guidance for state and local authorities, and other agencies in approving and monitoring data centre development. Additionally, the government has also recently launched the Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS), which allows large corporate consumers, including data centres, to utilise Malaysia’s renewable energy potential. This initiative aims to support Malaysia’s focus on sustainable operations and ESG commitments.

In this publication, Caera Lee, Jonathan Lim, Cheng Yen of  Zaid Ibrahim & Co (in association with KPMG Law) highlights the key takeaways from the Guidelines and the CRESS framework, including licensing requirements for data centre providers in Malaysia.