Bangi, Selangor, 23 September 2011 – Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD), as part of its corporate social responsibility initiatives, has contributed RM15 million to the endowment fund for the newly set-up UKM-YSD Chair for Sustainable Development – Zero Waste Technology for the Palm Oil Industry.

The endowment fund will help Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) research team, as well as the Sime Darby Plantation’s research team, to work together on integrated areas that will ultimately innovate palm oil milling processes through the creation of homegrown green technology that will result in zero emission of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) and greener, more sustainable practices for the industry.

The endowment fund will enable a prominent scholar to be appointed as a Chairholder that will leapfrog, stimulate and catalyse the research and also contribute to capacity development and publications in these areas. 

YSD today presented a mock cheque to UKM at a special ceremony witnessed by the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Mohd Yasin.  YSD Chairman, Tun Musa Hitam, handed over the mock cheque to the UKM Vice-Chancellor, YBhg. Prof. Tan Sri Dato' Wira Dr. Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin.

Also present were Minister of Higher Education, YB Dato' Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin; Secretary General of the Ministry of Higher Education, YBhg. Datuk Ab. Rahim bin Md. Noor; the Chairman of the UKM Board of Directors, YBhg. Tan Sri Dr. Zulkefli A. Hassan; YSD Governing Council member, YBhg. Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Wan Mohd Zahid Mohd Noordin; Chief Science Advisor to the Prime Minister, YBhg. Prof. Emeritus Datuk Dr Zakri Abdul Hamid; and; the newly appointed Chairholder, Dr. Ir. Pieternel Claassen of Wageningen University and Research Centre.

In his speech, Muhyiddin said the formation of the UKM-YSD Chair for Sustainable Development – Zero Waste Technology for the Palm Oil Industry is a fine example of a close relationship between the industry and university.

“I hope it will be emulated by other private and public institutions. It is the epitome of collaborative innovation from both parties, aimed at the greater good of not only each other, but in this case the environment, the community, the nation, and potentially the world.

“The Chair will not only provide a platform for the nation to achieve socio-economic and environmental objectives, but will also assist the university in moving towards financial independence through their collaborative efforts,” he added.

Musa, in his speech, said, “The Chair holds the key to lift the general stigma that international markets have on the sustainability, or rather, the ‘un-sustainability’ of the palm oil industry and its products and by-products.

“With the industry being one of the major contributors to the Malaysian economy, and Sime Darby as one of the top players of the industry, it is hoped that through this research, we will not only increase the sustainability of our practices, but also drive the commercial value and increase the wealth generation of the industry, whilst enabling a better environment for future generations.”

Prof. Dr. Sharifah Hapsah, in her speech, highlighted UKM’s role as a strong proponent of knowledge generation, knowledge transfer or exchange, and knowledge innovation spurred by disciplined experts in the university working in collaboration with researchers in industry. 

“An endowed Chair is one of the methods used to provide a platform for public-private partnerships which catalyses and spearheads cutting edge research to solve problems related to the environment and climate change, renewable energy and sustainable development.

“All of these vigorous research initiatives can translate into catalytic benefits for the nation and region in areas such as community development, economic transformation, environmental sustainability and social cohesion,” she added.

The UKM-YSD Chair for Sustainable Development – Zero Waste Technology for the Palm Oil Industry comes at a timely moment when there is an urgent need for the palm oil industry to come up with solutions in reducing GHGs through research on green technology and innovative practices.

The first Chairholder, Dr. Claassen, is senior scientist in the group Biomass and Bioenergy at Wageningen UR Food & Biobased Research Institute.  He is an expert in the bioprocess for hydrogen production from biomass, which is one of the main thrust areas that will be explored by this Chair.

Other research areas that will be explored by the Chair are the composting of bio-solids for organic fertilizer, hydrogen production for steam and power generation, the pre-treatment of biomass for hydrogen production, algae production to sink carbon dioxide, and the recycling and reuse of water.

The ultimate aim of the research is to turn palm oil mills into green factories that are not only carbon neutral, but also leave a negative carbon footprint. Zero waste implies that the future production of palm oil will dispense no waste to the air, ground and water. At the same time, the research will also be able to increase the revenue of the industry and the productivity of palm oil companies.

Currently, the Chair’s first project is to eliminate black smoke from Sime Darby’s palm oil mills. The system being developed will be tested in October 2011 and if successful, black smoke from the chimney of West Oil Mills in Carey Island, Selangor and later all Sime Darby mills will be a thing of the past.

At the same time, both the UKM and Sime Darby Plantation research teams are working on the production of nitrogen-enriched compost, which will have a direct impact on the reduction of fertilizer costs.  It is anticipated that this project will be completed by mid- 2012.

Other research projects under the Chair will lead to the production of renewable hydrogen fuel, bio-fertilizer and animal feed, among others. The production of hydrogen fuel will help contribute to Malaysia’s commitment to reduce GHG intensity by 40 percent by the year 2020.

As fertilizer and animal feed are mostly imported, the production of Malaysia’s own bio-fertilizer and animal feed through this Chair is expected to reduce annual import bills of these commodities by about RM4.2 billion and RM2.6 billion, respectively.

In addition, production of hydrogen, bio-fertilizer and animal feed will generate an additional revenue of RM14 billion per year to the oil palm industry or a 20 percent increase to the current palm products’ revenue of RM60 billion. This figure is theoretically derived from total utilisation of 90 million tonnes of biomass which constitutes the mill effluent, fibres and empty fruit bunches.

The project, initiated by YSD in January 2010, will not only involve UKM but also other local public institutions. Through this concerted effort, it will create a consortium of Malaysian intellectual capital that will share their expertise in the Chair.

Currently, researchers from institutions such as the Malaysia Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) and University of Nottingham Malaysia, are already working collaboratively with UKM on various research areas that will help spur the Chair.