Latest news with #Mida
Free Malaysia Today
2 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Sustainable data centre framework set for October launch
Investment, trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said the agreement was reached during the third meeting of the Data Centre Task Force for 2025 today. (X pic) PETALING JAYA : A framework for sustainable data centres is expected to be introduced in October, according to investment, trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz. Tengku Zafrul said the framework, which will come under the purview of the digital ministry, will include strategic coordination with all relevant agencies and state governments regarding the implementation of data centre development projects. He said the agreement was reached during the third meeting of the Data Centre Task Force for 2025, which he co-chaired today with digital minister Gobind Singh Deo. 'The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) will serve as the focal point for all applications for new data centre projects and expansions. 'This will ensure all initiatives and projects proceed smoothly, avoid duplication of functions, and support the development of a more sustainable and strategic national data centre ecosystem,' he said in a post on X tonight. Tengku Zafrul said the meeting was crucial to ensure the development of Malaysia's data centre industry becomes more sustainable, competitive and investor-friendly. The task force is a multi-agency strategic platform led by his ministry and the digital ministry to coordinate the planning and implementation of data centre projects holistically.
The Star
06-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
Potential RM4bil investments from Anwar's visit to France, says Zafrul
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia has successfully attracted potential investments worth RM4bil from French companies, following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's recent visit, says Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Aziz ( pic ). The Investment, Trade and Industry Minister said representatives from the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) and the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) were also part of the Malaysian delegation led by Anwar. During the visit, Anwar met with 40 representatives from French industry. "Several French companies expressed the intention to invest a cumulative value of RM4bil in sectors such as high-tech manufacturing, aerospace, renewable energy, tourism and hospitality, digital economy and sustainable infrastructure. "As for potential exports, RM675mil was generated for high-impact sectors such as aerospace, automotive, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, digital economy, lifestyle and the halal industry," it said in a statement on Sunday (July 6). All these are sectors targeted under the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) and Green Investment Strategy. Companies shared their intention to continue investing in Malaysia, driven by key factors such as a conducive, stable and dynamic investment ecosystem; encouraging global demand for Malaysian-made products; efficient domestic supply chains; a highly skilled workforce; and investor-friendly government policies," it added. Meanwhile, Tengku Zafrul said the overall success of this mission reflects the continued confidence of many foreign companies in Malaysia's investor-friendly policies, supply chain ecosystem, competitiveness and economic growth potential. "The investment and trade potential to be realised will also provide business opportunities for local companies, including Small and Medium Enterprises, and more high-paying jobs for Malaysians. All these are key in driving our Madani economic transformation agenda," he said. The visit was part of the Prime Minister's official working visit to Italy, France and Brazil from July 1 to 8.
Malay Mail
04-07-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
MOF introduces transitional measures to ease SST compliance for industry players
KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — The Finance Ministry (MOF) has agreed to provide transitional support to industry players during the change in the scope of the Sales and Service Tax (SST), following feedback regarding difficulties in complying with all operational requirements. In a statement today, MOF said the government will allow service providers to manually submit statements for the taxable period from July 1 to Sept 30, 2025. 'However, the Service Tax (ST) must still be charged and collected during this period. 'The Madani government understands that service providers need more time to upgrade their systems for tax compliance and implementation,' MOF said. Meanwhile, MOF said registered manufacturers are required to impose and collect Sales Tax (ST) starting July 1, 2025, and are eligible to apply for exemptions on raw materials used in the manufacturing of taxable goods. Additionally, companies that have already received ST exemptions via the tax exemption committee under the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) before July 1 will continue to enjoy the exemption, subject to the terms and duration previously set. 'However, if these companies manufacture finished taxable goods after July 1 and meet the specified threshold value, they are required to register as registered manufacturers and may apply for exemption via the MySST portal at 'MOF hopes that these measures will help facilitate business operations and ease compliance for companies affected by the SST scope expansion,' the statement added. Business and members of the public can contact the Royal Malaysian Customs Department Call Centre hotline at 1-300-888-500 for more information. — Bernama
The Sun
26-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
DHL and Mida to elevate Malaysia's logistics and supply chain ecosystem
KUALA LUMPUR: DHL has reaffirmed its longstanding partnership with the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) through the signing of a new nemorandum of understanding (MOU). Under this renewed collaboration, all four DHL business divisions operating in Malaysia – DHL Express, DHL Supply Chain, DHL Global Forwarding, and DHL eCommerce – will work closely with Mida to strengthen the logistics and supply chain ecosystem, supporting Malaysia's position as a leading hub for foreign investment, Mida said in a statement. The announcement builds on a successful collaboration since 2023, where joint efforts with Mida's global and local offices have yielded significant investment outcomes. These span across key priority sectors – including electrical and electronics, pharmaceutical, digital economy, aerospace, and chemicals – diversified across eight states: Kedah, Penang, Perak, Johor, Malacca, Sabah, Sarawak and Selangor. Mida CEO Datuk Sikh Shamsul Ibrahim Sikh Abdul Majid remarked, 'Malaysia's logistics sector has undergone a remarkable transformation, emerging as a powerhouse of innovation and technological advancement. We're witnessing developments in digital technology and smart automation, from AI-powered route optimisation and real-time tracking to advanced warehouse robotics and autonomous delivery systems. 'Through Mida's proactive assistance and facilitation, we've created an ecosystem that nurtures these technological advancements and our renewed partnership with DHL represents a strategic alliance that will accelerate Malaysia's journey towards becoming the region's premier smart logistics hub.' DHL Express Malaysia and Brunei danaging director Julian Ng said, 'As multishoring and multisourcing increase in strategic prevalence, Malaysia is well positioned to capitalise on this momentum due to its regional connectivity and conducive business ecosystem. 'With our extensive network and experience in facilitating cross-border trade, DHL Express is proud to assist Mida in appealing to global investors by enabling seamless market entry and providing end-to-end logistics solutions. Together, we can make effective progress in our shared mission to bolster the country's competitive and innovative potential.' DHL remains committed to elevating Malaysia's profile among multinational corporations seeking to diversify their manufacturing and sourcing operations. With its strong presence in Malaysia and comprehensive end-to-end logistics and supply chain capabilities, DHL is well equipped to support foreign investors in enhancing supply chain resilience by leveraging Malaysia's strategic location. Furthermore, DHL is strategically positioned to support Malaysia's New Industrial Master Plan 2030 and its sustainable development targets. – Bernama
The Star
25-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Moving up the DC value chain
KUALA LUMPUR: The data centre (DC) phenomenon globally has taken on a new course, moving from being mainly cloud DCs to being more artificial intelligence (AI) based for the future. And with that, the sentiment has gone from the idea of sheer expansion of the industry to how each country can shape what is coming next. Malaysia has proven itself as a successful and tantalising hub for DCs starting from the 2000s, and this was strongly accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Malaysian Investment Development Authority's (Mida) chief executive officer Datuk Sikh Shamsul Ibrahim Sikh Abdul Majid said the DC journey is no longer about chasing megawatts, lower latency or faster deployment, but rather about building a digital spine for the nation – one that is resilient, sustainable, inclusive and future ready. 'The world is undergoing a generational shift. Generative AI, quantum breakthroughs and large-scale automation are not theoretical futures, they are life-evolving systems. And DCs are at the heart of this transformation,' he said during Bursa Malaysia and Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd's 19th edition of the Stratum Focus Series, themed 'Data Centre 2.0: The Ecosystem and What's Next for Malaysia' here yesterday. According to Sikh Shamsul, the global shifts have been evident enough that this should serve as a call to action for Malaysia. Within the country for the first quarter, he noted there were RM89.8bil approved investments. Of this, RM35.1bil went to the information and communications sub-sector, with over 93% flowing into DC projects. He added that from 2021 until March 2025, the Digital Investment Office (DIO) facilitated RM310.7bil in digital investments. The DIO is a joint initiative by both Mida and the Malaysia Digital Economy Corp. 'We have surpassed our national target of RM130bil well ahead of schedule. More than 92,000 new jobs have been catalysed, with many in frontier domains like cloud engineering, AI operations and cybersecurity,' he said. However, Sikh Shamsul said he acknowledged that many viewed DCs as power-hungry assets that yield limited local benefits, but this was not true. 'This perspective may not fully capture the broader and deeper value that DCs bring to the economy. Beyond direct employment, DCs support entire value chains, from civil engineering, and mechanical and engineering services to cloud application development and digital transformation for SME's,' he said. Sikh Shamsul also said to sustain momentum, the domestic ecosystem must be deepened, which is why Mida's Data Centre Nexus 2025 was vital for the industry. 'This initiative brought together eight global operators and 16 Malaysian vendors, unlocking commercial dialogues that are now progressing into tangible partnerships. 'We would like to see more Malaysian companies be potential vendors or suppliers to these hyperscalers or DC operators,' he added. Still, he cautioned that unchecked growth will carry risks such as greenhouse gas emissions. 'We must avoid the trap of scaling fast without scaling responsibly. This is why sustainability is not an afterthought, it is a strategic imperative in which the government has said it is committed to steering for the industry,' he noted. Meanwhile, JLL Malaysia Data Centre Transactions Lead director Kent Seet said the country was not short of advantages of why its location is suitably strategic for DCs, and will continue to draw more investments in the coming years. He said being natural disaster-free has been one of the top reasons why, citing that other countries within the region had not been so fortunate. 'We've had some clients that have pulled out halfway of constructing DCs in these countries because the risks are there. 'Malaysia also has ample water and power supply, and is still relatively cheaper compared to the developed and even regional countries,' he said. The workforce is another bonus, he said, whereby English is widely spoken. This is on top of the fact that most Malaysians speak many other languages, which is an added advantage. With talk about the upcoming electricity tariffs and how this might impact DC operators, Seet said he doesn't expect it to be huge for these companies, as they will definitely be reeling in profits. 'So, about the electricity tariff, I think they are going to implement it in the coming months. I don't know how big the impact is, but I would like to believe that the impact won't really reduce such investments coming to Malaysia. It's more of a way to filter out the speculation,' he explained. As for the next hotspots for DCs, Seet said areas outside of Greater KL could be the newer, more ideal locations. 'Negri Sembilan, I always say, is an up-and-coming location, mainly because the land it offers is more affordable. If we look at Cyberjaya and some locations in Johor, it is already three figures per sq ft. Then you look at Kuala Lumpur, and there is no land big enough to build a proper tech park,' he said. Sarawak is another state that has been mentioned a number of times in terms of being a viable location for DCs. Seet said he recently visited the state and spoke to some of the government agencies where he learnt that they were very positive about any such investments there. 'Going back to the fundamentals, DCs store data and they need connectivity. I think Sarawak has three or four cable landing stations compared to Peninsular Malaysia, where I think we have about nine. 'So, each cable landing station has several fibres connected to the rest of the world,' he explained. In essence, to make Sarawak a successful DC destination, there needs to be more cable landing stations. 'The state will also need to figure out who its customers are – it could be the government, the private sector or even tech companies. 'Perhaps, if its government can offer some contracts to DC operators, it could be a catalyst for the rest,' he said.
