KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 26): Energy services firm ENGIE and Sunway Property have expanded their district cooling partnership to supply low-carbon cooling to Sunway Education Group’s (SEG) facilities.

Scheduled for completion in September 2026, the expanded district cooling system (DCS) will add up to 3,000 refrigeration tonnes (RT) of cooling capacity and is expected to meet 60% of SEG’s peak cooling load and 75% of annual demand.

Simultaneously, it will serve eight buildings, including Sunway University and Sunway College, avoiding more than 48,000 tonnes of CO2 over the 24-year contract period.

ENGIE and Sunway said the move reinforces Malaysia’s push to cut national greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030, with district cooling providing measurable energy and cost savings in dense urban environments. 

The expansion shows “sustainability and growth can go hand-in-hand”, positioning the project as a model for Malaysia’s low-carbon transition, ENGIE Southeast Asia managing director Jacques Boonen said in a statement on Nov 18.

Sunway Education Group CEO Professor Datuk Dr Elizabeth Lee highlighted that the initiative offers real-world energy-efficiency learning opportunities for students and strengthens links between campus sustainability, research and practice.

The partnership, which began in 2020, incorporates innovation such as a chilled-water thermal energy storage tank designed as a “mechanical battery” and integrated into a car-ramp spiral to maximise land use. 

Separately, ENGIE currently operates 100 district cooling networks globally, including projects in Cyberjaya, the Philippines and Singapore.

“Together with ENGIE, we are integrating advanced energy solutions that strengthen our ecosystem and move us closer towards creating a smarter, more sustainable city for generations to come,” Sunway Property CEO (central and northern region) Chong Sau Min added.