Sarawak is expected to achieve 100 percent coverage in water and electricity amenities by 2025 through the various integrated strategies, said State Utility Minister Stephen Rundi Utom.

He said his ministry would incorporate the use of digital technology in the water supply and electricity sectors in tandem with technological advancement in these two sectors.

“At the same time, water and electricity grids throughout the state will be extended to ensure a more reliable service delivery of these two important amenities,” he said when winding up debate pertaining to the ministry in the State Legislative Assembly here today.

He said these strategies include connections through grids for areas with accessibility and through stand-alone systems for the remote rural areas without easy accessibility under the Sarawak alternative rural water supply (Sawa), and Sarawak alternative rural electrification scheme (Sares) programmes.

Rundi said his ministry has just completed a preliminary master plan study jointly carried out with all the water supply agencies concerned to look into short, medium and long term strategies.

“The preliminary master plan study will serve as a framework to come up with the terms of reference for carrying out a detail master plan study, to be commissioned in 2018 by the State Planning Unit in the Chief Minister’s Department, while water grids are proposed for long term reliability and efficiency,” he said.

On rural electricity supply, Rundi said through the federal funded rural electrification scheme (RES) about 110,000 new rural households had been connected to 24-hour electricity supply since 2009.

He said presently the overall electricity coverage in the state is 95 percent, with rural coverage at 89 percent.

Under the Rural Power Supply Master Plan, he said new transmission lines and substations in rural interior had been planned and would form part of the integrated transmission system connecting rural areas to the main transmission grid.

Rundi said among the extra high voltage rural transmission substations planned are Tatau 275kV, Kanowit 132kV and Ba’kelalan 132kV, which could also support future rural economic growth.

Another initiative for rural electrification, Sares was intended to light up houses and communities in Sarawak’s most remote villages and households, he added.

- Bernama