PRESS RELEASE: Alex Thien Demands Full Disclosure on Lahad Datu BESS Performance.
I am urging SESB, ECoS, and all relevant authorities to immediately disclose the true operational performance of the Lahad Datu Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).
The Lahad Datu tender documents are clear. The project was presented as a minimum 100MW / 400MWh usable-capacity stand-alone lithium-ion BESS, with performance to be measured at the Point of Measurement (POM). The documents further require one full charge-discharge cycle per day, guaranteed usable energy of at least 400MWh for the first five years, annual degradation reporting, and continuous monitoring of charging, discharging, power output, and state of charge.
Yet serious public questions now arise as to whether the plant is actually being operated in a manner consistent with those expectations.
If the Lahad Datu BESS is subject in practice to major operating restrictions, then the authorities must explain why. If the system is not being allowed to charge and discharge in a commercially rational and technically expected way, then Sabahans are entitled to know whether this is due to operational policy, equipment limitation, design compromise, or underperformance of the delivered plant.
This is not a minor matter. The entire justification for a BESS project of this scale is that it should improve grid performance and reduce system costs, including diesel dependence where applicable. Therefore, the public deserves direct answers to the following:
- What is the actual cost of charging the BESS per MWh?
- What is the actual net electrical output discharged from the plant?
- How much diesel consumption has been reduced since the BESS was implemented?
- What are the actual operating limits being imposed on the system?
- Is the plant delivering the real MW and MWh performance promised at the POM?
- Are there hidden limitations related to PCS, inverter, DC block, or dispatch settings that materially reduce the plant’s practical output?
The government and relevant agencies cannot hide behind technical jargon while expecting the public to accept headline project numbers at face value. If the Lahad Datu BESS is performing as promised, then publish the data. If it is not, then explain the shortfall honestly and transparently.
The tender documents themselves require annual reporting on use-case performance, outages, maintenance activity, and safety incidents. That means the operational record should already exist and should be made available for proper scrutiny.
Public procurement in the energy sector must not become a black box. Sabahans are paying for these assets directly or indirectly. They are entitled to know whether the system is performing as specified, whether it is economical, and whether the procurement process is genuinely serving the public interest.
I therefore call for three immediate actions:
First, the public disclosure of Lahad Datu BESS operating data, including charging cost, discharge output, state-of-charge operating profile, round-trip performance, and diesel savings.
Second, an independent technical review of whether the plant’s actual operational capability matches the promised specification and economic purpose.
Third, a commitment that future energy procurements in Sabah be subjected to proper transparency, professional scrutiny, and credible expert review.
Sabah needs energy projects that are not only impressive on paper, but proven in operation.
Alex Thien
Tanjong Papat N.56 Assemblyman
