IChemE chair meets Malaysian minster to promote expert input

THE chair of IChemE’s Malaysia board, Christina Phang, has met with the country’s new energy minister to promote the value of chemical engineers advising on energy issues.

Phang met with Yeo Bee Yin, a chemical engineer who was made energy minister in July, to advise that the discipline is best placed to advise the ministry on some of its key areas of focus including renewable energy, energy efficiency, and reducing the use of plastics with bio-degradable substitutions.

The two, who met last month, also discussed how IChemE and its members could contribute to the ministry’s redrafting of the Energy Efficiency Act, with a focus on the potential reduction of electricity generated by coal.

In a recent interview with The Star, Yeo said: “I want to listen to you. We want to create an environment where businesses can innovate, invest, where projects can become bankable, so we can have a good ecosystem for our renewable energy to grow.”

Phang said she is delighted to have met the minister and is keen to strengthen the relationship between IChemE and the ministry.

“She is a chemical engineer by training, and therefore we have a mutual understanding of the expertise that chemical engineers can offer on a number of initiatives and policies that are being led by her ministry. This meeting is a positive step forward for the Institution, and its relationship with the Malaysian government.

“Chemical engineers are making important contributions to energy every day – developing innovative products and methods that are more sustainable, more efficient, and more cost effective.

“In my view, it is key that chemical engineers have an input to any changes proposed by the government that will affect energy production and consumption in Malaysia. We can draw upon our experiences locally, as well as from across the world, to offer technical expertise and help shape any changes for the betterment of society, the environment and the economy.”

Yeo Bee Yin graduated with a first-class honours degree in chemical engineering at the Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Malaysia, and completed her Master’s at the University of Cambridge, UK.