QUESTION TIME | Why would someone choose a property developer, and a relatively small one at that, Tadmax Resources, with a market value of RM227.3 million to undertake a massive RM3.5 billion, 1200MW project to become an independent power producer (IPP) to supply Tenaga Nasional?

Well, the current Harapan government squarely placed the blame on the previous BN government which had, in August 2016, announced the award through the Energy Commission via direct negotiations.

Inexplicably, after a review, the new Harapan government handed back the project on a platter to Tadmax, although there are many reasons why the project should have been nixed.

First, in August last year Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change and Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin said that Malaysia’s electricity reserve margin will hit 46 percent if Putrajaya does not proceed with the planned cancellation of certain new IPPs.

That effectively means that it has a reserve capacity of 46 percent above what it requires for power...