Key Takeaways
For businesses working on sustainability reporting or RE100 commitments, Ray Go Solar often gets asked how Renewable Energy Certificates compare to installing solar directly. This article explains how RECs actually work in Malaysia, based on official sources, and where they fit alongside commercial and industrial solar.
An mREC (Malaysia Renewable Energy Certificate) represents the delivery of 1 MWh of renewable electricity to the national grid, sourced from renewable generators and redeemed through the I-REC registry. mRECs are managed through mGATS (Malaysia Green Attribute Tracking System), operated by TNBX Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Tenaga Nasional Berhad. Owning a retired mREC lets a business claim the environmental attributes of that unit of renewable generation.
This is the detail many summaries get wrong: according to mGATS’s own site, mRECs cannot be resold or traded between parties in Malaysia. Instead, they are redeemed directly to an end customer and retired, meaning the certificate is permanently used up for that customer’s claim, with no secondary market. This is a meaningful difference from how RECs function in some other countries, where active trading markets exist.
In practice, the way Malaysian businesses and households currently access this is through the Green Electricity Tariff (GET), a TNB subscription product: customers subscribe through the myTNB Portal for a minimum 12-month term, in blocks of 1,000 kWh for non-residential customers (100 kWh for residential), capped at 30% of average monthly consumption.
Billing uses whichever is lower, the subscribed amount or actual consumption, and the subscriber receives their mREC confirmation after the calendar year ends. There’s no separate open marketplace to simply “buy RECs” outside this subscription structure at the time of writing, so businesses should check mGATS directly for the current process rather than relying on older descriptions of REC trading.
GET is priced at 3.7 sen per kWh, a rate set by the Energy Commission based on the incremental cost of procuring green energy, on top of standard electricity tariff charges. There’s currently no tax exemption or special rate tied to GET subscription.
Since this is a regulated rate rather than a market price, it’s a more reliable figure to plan around than the broader, more variable REC pricing sometimes quoted for other countries’ markets.
It’s worth distinguishing GET from Malaysia’s other renewable electricity mechanism, the Corporate Renewable Energy Supply Scheme (CRESS). GET is a certificate-based subscription, your physical electricity supply doesn’t change, you’re paying for a documented claim layered on top of standard grid power. CRESS, by contrast, involves actually purchasing renewable electricity from a specific developer, delivered through the grid under a dedicated supply agreement, generally aimed at larger medium and high voltage commercial and industrial users.
If a business wants certificate-only coverage for reporting purposes, GET is the more accessible, lower-commitment route. If a business wants to demonstrate a direct, physically-sourced renewable supply, and has the scale to participate, CRESS is the more substantive claim, though it comes with a different cost structure and a longer-term commitment.
GET / mREC Subscription | CRESS | Rooftop Solar | |
|---|---|---|---|
Physical electricity change | None | Yes, sourced from a specific developer | Yes, generated on-site |
Cost structure | 3.7 sen/kWh on top of standard tariff | System Access Charge plus developer’s electricity rate | Capital investment, then ongoing savings |
Typical commitment | Minimum 12 months, auto-renewing | Long-term supply agreement | One-time investment, decades of operation |
Suitable for | Any business wanting a documented claim without physical change | Larger medium/high voltage C&I users | Businesses with suitable roof space |
ESG/RE100 credibility | Accepted, certificate-based | Generally viewed as a stronger, physically-backed claim | Generally viewed as a strong, direct claim |
In practice, these aren’t necessarily competing options. A business with suitable roof space generally gets more long-term financial value from installing its own solar system, since it reduces actual electricity costs rather than adding a subscription charge. For businesses that can’t install solar, GET offers a documented, officially recognised way to support sustainability claims in the meantime.
Interest in documented renewable electricity claims has grown as international buyers scrutinise supplier sustainability credentials more closely, and as Malaysia moves ahead with its own carbon tax plans. For exporters in particular, being able to show a renewable electricity claim, whether through GET, CRESS, or on-site solar, can support Scope 2 reporting ahead of developments like the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
None of these mechanisms are mutually exclusive: a business might run rooftop solar where it can, subscribe to GET to cover the gap, and consider CRESS if it later needs renewable coverage at a larger scale.
No. According to mGATS, mRECs cannot be traded or resold; they’re redeemed and retired directly to the end customer who subscribed.
No, it adds a cost on top of your standard tariff, 3.7 sen per kWh for the subscribed amount. It supports a sustainability claim rather than reducing consumption charges.
GET is a certificate-based subscription where your physical electricity supply doesn’t change; CRESS involves actually sourcing electricity from a specific renewable developer through a dedicated supply agreement. GET is more accessible for smaller claims, while CRESS suits larger businesses wanting a physically-backed renewable supply.
Yes. A business might install rooftop solar to cover what its roof space allows, then subscribe to GET to support a renewable claim for its remaining electricity use.
Yes, Malaysia’s I-REC registry, which mRECs are redeemed from, is recognised by CDP, the GHG Protocol, and RE100.
Subscription is done through the myTNB Portal, with quotas published on the TNB and mGATS websites. Since terms can be updated, confirming current details directly through mGATS or TNB is recommended.
For businesses with the roof space to support it, generating your own renewable electricity generally offers more direct, long-term value than a subscription alone.
Ray Go Solar designs commercial and industrial solar systems for businesses looking to reduce electricity costs and build a genuine on-site renewable generation story, and its battery energy storage solutions can further support a broader sustainability strategy alongside instruments like GET.
