The passing of the RE and SEDA Acts 2011 in April 2011 did not happen by chance. Introduction of the feed-in tariff (FiT) to Malaysia began as early as 2004, and in 2011, the years of effort finally culminated in the passing of the two laws related to sustainable energy. The result is the dawn of a new era for Malaysia in a move towards achieving energy autonomy and mitigating climate change.

The milestones leading to the implementation of the FiT are as follows (in chronological order):

February 2004: The Malaysia Building Intergrated Photovoltaic (MBIPV) Project* submitted a brief document to UNDP/GEF which introduced the feed-in tariff as one of the possible renewable energy policies for consideration.

June 2005: The MBIPV Project organized a high level meeting and study mission to Germany & Netherlands to enhance the understanding of feed-in tariff, especially in Germany.

September 2005: The MBIPV Project conducted a seminar on “Policy & Financial Frameworks Promoting Sustainable Photovoltaic Markets” whereby the FiT was discussed as a viable renewable energy policy for Malaysia.

May 2006: The MBIPV Project submitted a proposal on the Clean Energy Fund to the then Ministry of Energy, Water and Communications (KTAK).

July 2006: The MBIPV Project completed a report entitled "International Review of Regulatory Schemes For PV" which included a comprehensive report on the FiT.

January 2008: The MBIPV Project presented to the National Steering Committee (NSC) a “Best Policy for RE/PV in Malaysia” which emphasized the FiT.

August 2008: The MBIPV Project provided support to KTAK officials to give a special briefing to YB Minister Dato’ Shaziman Mansor (then Minister of KTAK) on the FiT.

October 2008: The MBIPV Project prepared a report entitled Independent Policy, Regulatory & Financial Analysis for the Ministry of Energy, Water and Communications (KTAK) to further consider the feed-in tariff.

November 2008: The MBIPV Project prepared a report on “Photovoltaic (PV) Policy Recommendations for Malaysia” which emphasized the FiT. The report was submitted to KTAK and the FiT was subsequently approved by Jawatankuasa Perancangan Pelaksanann Pembekalan Electrick dan Tarif (JPPPET).

December 2008: The MBIPV Project organized a high level workshop on the FiT.  The MBIPV Project also presented before the NSC an “RE Roadmap” which highlighted the FiT as the key driver of the roadmap.

February 2009: The MBIPV Project provided support to KTAK officials to give another special briefing to YB Minister Dato’ Shaziman Mansor on the FiT.

April 2009: The MBIPV Project submitted to the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA) a report on “RE Policy and Action Plan”.

May 2009: The MBIPV Project presented the “RE Policy & Action Plan”  to the NSC which highlighted the need for an RE Law in order to implement the FiT more effectively.

The MBIPV Project arranged the following courtesy visits to the YB Minister of KeTTHA:

•  Dr Winfried Hoffman (Applied Materials/EPIA) –FiT advocate
•  The late Dr Hermann Scheer(Social Democrat Party, Germany) –FiT pioneer
•  Mr Hans-Josef Fell (Green Party, Germany) –FiT pioneer
•  Dr David Jacobs (Brain Gain) – FiT & RE policy expert

April 2010: Cabinet approved the National RE Policy  
June 2010: FiT incorporated into the 10^th Malaysia Plan (chapter 6).

October 2010: FiT incorporated into the National Budget 2011 (paragraph 34) and Economic Transformation Programme (chapter 6).

December 2010: 1^st reading of the RE and SEDA Bills in Parliament.

April 2011: 2^nd and 3^rd readings of the RE and SEDA Bills in Parliament.

May 2011: RE and SEDA Bills received the royal assent.

June 2011: Gazette of the RE and SEDA Bills.