KUALA LUMPUR: The appointment of Solarvest Holdings Bhd's unit, Solarvest Energy Sdn Bhd, to install solar power systems at over 300 Petronas stations nationwide was based on merit.
Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) President and group chief executive officer Tengku Tan Sri Muhammad Taufik said there were technical standards and deadline driven outcomes that led to its selection for the turnkey contract.
"I agree in the recent contract there was a package awarded to Solarvest but on behalf of Gentari and Petronas Dagangan, I would like to stress that the selection was based on merit. It was a turnkey contract, off scale and required to be delivered within a timeframe.
"We did include bumiputera players from a list generated by Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) but unfortunately the selection process did not result in them being successful," he told a press briefing here today.
He added moving forward, the group will work closer to enable smaller consortia and alter its contracting strategy.
"I have already been informed that there has been discussions to propose a consortia approach rather than looking at one single provider," he said.
On the value of the contract, Tengku Taufik said it is not worth hundreds of million as claimed by certain parties.
"This contract is far smaller than hundreds of million," he added.
Solarvest Energy was appointed by Gentari Renewables Sdn Bhd to install solar power systems at over 300 Petronas stations across Malaysia by 2027.
Scheduled to begin in April 2024, the project will involve installing over 5.4 megawatt peak (MWp) of solar capacity across 300 Petronas stations.
In a news report, Malay Chamber of Commerce Malaysia questioned Petronas' commitment to uplift the Bumiputera agenda after it appointed Solarvest Energy.