Latest News

KOTA BHARU, 9th January 2017:  Kelantan has taken the lead in launching Malaysia’s first Carbon Credit/Offset trading  on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) in developing countries.

Marking a first for both the state and the country, it inked a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) here today with local company, Climate Protector Sdn Bhd.

Representing the state government was Menteri Besar, Dato Haji Ahmad bin Yaakob while the Chief Executive Officer of Climate Protector, Mr. Tang Too Siah, signed for the company whose concession is valid for the duration of 30 years.

“The overall development goal of the Programme is to reduce forest emissions and enhance carbon stocks in forests while contributing to national sustainable development. This initiative by the state government has received the blessings of his Majesty, the Yang Di Pertuan Agong, Sultan Muhammad Faris Petra during his speech at the opening of the State Assembly in March 2015.

“Climate Protector will commence operation immediately after the signing ceremony of the MOA. It will take around 12 to 24 months to conduct a scientific calculation, valuation and verification report by certified independent scientists to determine the carbon stocks in the designated state Forest.

“The total area involved is 396,000 hectares or about 1,000,000 acre Forest. This is about 25% of the total area of Kelantan state, added Dato Haji Ahmad bin Yaakob.

The Menteri Besar also noted that there will be profit sharing basis between the state government and Climate Protector on this concession for 30 years. It will bring positive cash flow toward the state government coffers annually.

“For the people of Kelantan, this project will create significant awareness towards conservation and jobs for the local people. As REDD/REDD+ project is conservation and protecting the Forest, local native, Flora and Fauna will add extra “credits” towards biodiversity of the project,” said Dato Haji Ahmad bin Yaakob, adding that both parties are committed towards preservation and protection of the National Tropical Rain Forest.

According to Mr. Tang, under the 30 years concession, no timber logging and felling are allowed in the area, including mining and any activities that will undermine the conservation process of the Forest. He said the project will be implemented in phases. The entire area under the concession will be under the care of Climate Protector and a joint task force will be formed to monitor the area, including the deployment of new technology like drone and thermal scanning to protect and defend the forest from illegal logging. Apart from this, Climate Protector will be implementing the latest technology called EcoBit. It is a block chain technology where data is structured in a way that makes it possible to create a digital ledger of transactions, which cannot be altered but totally transparent, thus enabling it to track and monitor the carbon credit.

“As this is an international project, it will involve foreign expertise. We are projecting investment of RM30 million to RM50 million and we will include local companies and local universities to work together for these 30 years. Our target markets will mostly be advance countries like from the European Union.

“Since one million acres is a very huge land space, which is about 5.6 times the size of Singapore, there will be significant jobs created to protect, monitor and conserve the forest area. We will be incorporating state of the art drone surveillance system and working together with the local forestry to protect and conserve the forest. There will be a transfer of technology and all equipment will be handed over to state government after the 30 years concession period ends, said Mr. Tang.

The exchange of carbon credits traditionally involves their transfer from developing countries to industrialized countries. We are convinced that the future of the market lies partly in the development of transactions, particularly with industrialized nations. Economies are booming, CO2 regulations are emerging, and local corporates are beginning to understand the business opportunities that can arise from actions that address climate change.

“Undoubtedly, this partnership will yield measurable benefits for the climate, and serve as a national model for how the power of market incentives can bring economic returns to participating partners while building a healthier environment. This transaction, and the partnership between the State Government of Kelantan and Climate Protector Sdn Bhd, represent a successful result of Conservation Innovation of the  REDD program. Projects like this show that environmental improvement, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, and increased yields are not mutually exclusive,” said Mr. Tang.

The outlook for carbon trading in Malaysia has been given a tremendous boost following the signing of this MOA for the sale of carbon credits/offset. This project, which has the support by the newly crowned King, makes Kelantan the first state in Malaysia to commit to Climate Protection in such a large scale.