Who this page is for
This page is for factories, manufacturing plants and industrial-park facilities billed on TNB's medium- or high-voltage tariffs — Medium Voltage General / Time of Use and High Voltage General / Time of Use, which replaced the old commercial C1/C2 and industrial E1/E1s/E2/E3 categories on 1 July 2025 — where a maximum-demand charge sits alongside the energy rate. If your site is a low-voltage office, retail unit or hotel, Commercial solar covers that tariff and load profile instead; if you need a single rooftop project scoped for one operating factory rather than the wider tariff and connection detail, factory solar goes deeper on shifts, roof and delivery.
Sector guides cover rubber glove and rubber-goods plants, electronics and semiconductor facilities and food and beverage plants — each with its own shift pattern, cleanroom or cold-chain constraint, and roof condition. Multi-site groups, round-the-clock plants and sites inside a gazetted industrial park are all in scope.
- Not the right page? A low-voltage office, retail unit or hotel: Commercial solar. One rooftop project for a single operating factory: factory solar installation.
How does GITA work for solar in Malaysia in 2026?
Current rules, until 31 December 2026. A company that owns a solar system for its own use can claim GITA Asset at Tier 2: an allowance of 60% of qualifying capital expenditure, set against up to 70% of statutory income. Under the current MGTC guideline the capex must be incurred, the system commissioned and the GITA Asset application received by MGTC by 31 December 2026 — the application can only be filed after commissioning. A system the company does not own does not qualify, because the claimant must own the asset.
From 1 January 2027 — proposed under Budget 2027, subject to legislation. The Budget 2027 tax measures propose extending GITA Asset to purchases verified by MGTC up to 31 December 2030, with two changes that matter for solar: a standalone solar system is no longer listed, and solar integrated with battery storage (BESS or ESS) moves to Tier 1 at 100% of qualifying capital expenditure, still set against up to 70% of statutory income. Companies would have to apply to MGTC within 24 months of purchase. These are announced proposals, not yet gazetted, and MGTC has not published its updated guideline or asset list. How a 2026 purchase verified in 2027 will be treated has not been published either, so plan to commission and apply in 2026. Source: MOF Budget 2027 Tax Measures, Appendix 25.
For a medium-voltage plant the proposal lines up with the engineering case: only a battery cuts the maximum-demand charge reliably, and solar + battery is the combination proposed for the Tier 1 rate — see BESS for C&I sites and the GITA guide for companies.
How TNB charges a medium-voltage industrial site
An industrial bill above the low-voltage threshold is built from several separate charges, not one blended rate: an energy charge per kWh consumed, a maximum-demand (MD) charge billed per kW, a network charge, the KWTBB renewable-energy fund levy, and the Automatic Fuel Adjustment (AFA), which TNB sets monthly. On time-of-use tariffs the peak window runs 2 pm–10 pm, Monday to Friday; off-peak is 10 pm–2 pm on weekdays and all day on weekends and public holidays. Only roughly 2 pm–4 pm of a rooftop system's output overlaps the peak window — morning output falls in off-peak.
The maximum-demand charge itself is not based on total energy used. It is set by the single highest 30-minute average demand TNB's meter records during the whole billing month, multiplied by the RM/kW maximum-demand rate printed on that bill's own "Maximum Demand" line. One half-hour spike, even once a month, sets the charge for the entire month. Under the tariff in force from 1 July 2025 that rate is RM89.27/kW on Medium Voltage General and RM97.06/kW on Medium Voltage Time of Use, where it applies to the peak-period MD (see the medium-voltage tariff guide). The figure on your own bill is what counts, so our engineering review always starts by pulling the last 12 months of MD history from your TNB statements.
Non-Domestic Low Voltage customers (formerly Tariff D) carry no separate maximum-demand line of their own — only the energy, retail and KWTBB charges apply. The MD charge begins on the medium- and high-voltage tariffs (formerly C1/C2 and E1/E1s/E2/E3) used by larger factories, plants and industrial-park tenants once demand moves off low voltage, which is why the worked example below (Non-Domestic Low Voltage) illustrates energy savings only; a worked maximum-demand example with a battery is on the factory solar page.
How much do industrial solar panels cost in Malaysia?
Cost is priced per project, not per watt. Each quote is built from 12 months of TNB bills (minimum 6), a roof plan, the single-line diagram and a meter and switchboard photo — plus half-hourly data and shift schedules where available. A booking of 20% of the system price, capped at RM20,000 locks in your slot and engineering review and is credited in full against the project. See industrial solar panel cost for what drives price.
There is no single per-kWp answer for an industrial site — installed cost is driven by factors a small rooftop project never sees: the roof type (metal deck, concrete, or a mix of ages and pitches across several blocks), whether the connection point needs medium-voltage interconnection work at the substation, whether a protection study and an updated single-line diagram (SLD) are needed before TNB approves the export, and how much shutdown-window flexibility production can offer for the switchgear tie-in. Two factories of the same size can carry very different costs once these are priced in, which is why Trexon quotes from a completed engineering review rather than a size-only estimate.
Sizing an industrial system: worked example
Sizing starts from the bill and the shift pattern, not the roof alone. Trexon's yield basis is roughly 105.0 kWh of generation per kWp per month for a well-oriented Malaysian rooftop (30 days × 3.5 peak-sun-hours, the same basis as Trexon's savings engine), then multiplies that by how much of the generation the site actually self-consumes — which depends heavily on shift pattern. The worked example below uses the Non-Domestic Low Voltage tariff (formerly Tariff D), and a single-shift factory archetype, because it isolates the energy-charge saving that solar delivers on any tariff; on medium voltage the same method applies at the MV energy rate on your own bill.
For sites that do carry a maximum-demand charge — the medium-voltage tariffs — Trexon counts no maximum-demand saving for solar alone. The MD charge is set by the single highest 30-minute demand in the month, and one cloudy half-hour during a production peak is enough to set it, so rooftop solar on its own does not reduce MD reliably. A dependable MD reduction needs battery storage sized and controlled for peak shaving — see BESS for C&I sites.
System size itself is also bounded by the Solar ATAP export scheme: a non-domestic installation is capped at 100% of the site's maximum demand (kWac), with a hard ceiling of 1,000 kW per installation (GP/ST/No. 60/2025 §8.3 and §8.5). DC-oversized or battery-buffered designs are permitted as long as the inverter's AC rating fits inside that cap — useful on sites where roof area exceeds what the MD cap alone would allow. Multi-tenant premises are not eligible for Solar ATAP (§6.1(d) of the guidelines); single-occupier premises with their own TNB account can apply. Trexon designs around Jinko 620W N-type modules with Solis, Huawei, Sungrow or GoodWe string or hybrid inverters, selected per site.
Illustrative 100 kWp single-shift factory on the Non-Domestic Low Voltage tariff
Illustrative example — labelled assumptions, not a quotation
- System size (assumed)
- 100 kWp
- Source: Assumed for this example
- Non-Domestic Low Voltage energy rate
- RM0.5068/kWh
- Source: TNB Non-Domestic Low Voltage tariff (formerly Tariff D), TNB Commercial & Industrial Pricing & Tariffs
- Generation assumption
- 105.0 kWh per kWp per month
- Source: Trexon yield basis (30 days × 3.5 peak-sun-hours)
- Self-consumption, 1-shift
- 98%
- Source: Trexon archetype model, ~30% solar penetration, no battery
- Monthly generation: 100 kWp × 105.0 kWh per kWp per month = 10,500 kWh per month
- Self-consumed energy: 10,500 kWh × 98% self-consumption = 10,290 kWh per month
- Monthly saving: 10,290 kWh × RM0.5068/kWh = RM5,215 per month
- Annual saving: RM5,215 per month × 12 = RM62,580 per year
Excludes the retail service charge, KWTBB levy and export credit for unconsumed surplus. Payback follows the same shape at any project size: for every RM100,000 of installed cost, payback in years = 100,000 ÷ annual saving. The Non-Domestic Low Voltage tariff itself carries no separate maximum-demand charge; on the medium-voltage tariffs (MV General / MV ToU) no MD saving is counted for solar alone — only battery peak shaving reduces MD.
Own, borrow, instalment or hire purchase?
Four ownership routes cover almost every industrial project, and in all four the manufacturer owns the system. Which one fits depends on how much upfront capital the project can absorb, how the finance team wants the cost to land against the energy saving, and the company's capacity to use GITA and capital allowances.
For plants that would rather spread the cost, Trexon arranges a hire-purchase plan of 2 to 5 years through Mitsubishi HC Capital Malaysia Sdn Bhd. The published rates are 3.6–3.95% flat p.a.; converted from the flat basis that is about 6.8–7.4% a year, which is the number to set against a bank facility. Credit approval fixes the final rate and any deposit, and the plant owns the system once the term ends, so the allowances stay with the manufacturer. Trexon does not offer arrangements where a third party owns the equipment on your roof.
| Route | Who owns it | Upfront | Who claims GITA/CA | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outright purchase | You | Full amount | You | Facilities with capex budget and full tax capacity |
| Green / bank loan | You | Depends on the bank's terms | You | Facilities that want ownership without a large cash outlay |
| 0% card instalment plan (IPP) | You | Paid over up to 24 months on a participating bank card | You | Smaller systems where the owner wants the asset without a bank loan |
| Hire purchase (2-5 yrs) | You, outright once the term completes | Financed through Mitsubishi HC Capital at 3.6–3.95% flat p.a. (effective about 6.8–7.4% a year); deposit set at credit approval | You — the asset ends up on your books | Facilities that want ownership and the tax position that comes with it, spread over a short term |
See hire purchase and commercial financing routes for how each route is structured in practice.
Tax incentives for manufacturers
Solar PV bought for a manufacturer's own consumption can qualify for the Green Investment Tax Allowance (GITA) Asset, Tier 2, subject to MGTC verification: an allowance equal to 60% of qualifying capital expenditure, which can be set off against up to 70% of a company's statutory income for the year of assessment, within a window that currently runs to 31 December 2026. The system must be commissioned and the GITA Asset application received by MGTC by 31 December 2026. Separately, the equipment can also qualify for standard capital allowances as plant and machinery. Read the mechanics in the GITA tax incentive guide or the capital allowance guide, and see GITA tax filing support for how Trexon supports the MGTC application.
Indicative only. Subject to MGTC verification, applicable tax law and confirmation by the customer’s licensed tax adviser. The system must be commissioned and the GITA Asset application submitted to MGTC by 31 December 2026.
Connection, shifts and site considerations
Shift pattern changes the economics more than almost anything else. A single-shift factory typically self-consumes around 98% of what a correctly sized system generates, because production runs inside daylight hours; a three-shift, round-the-clock plant self-consumes closer to 70%, because a large share of load falls outside sun hours. A 24/7 plant still benefits — the daytime portion of load is still displaced (an energy-charge saving); a maximum-demand saving comes only from battery (BESS) peak shaving — and pairing solar with battery storage is worth modelling for sites that run more shifts; see BESS for commercial and industrial sites for that pairing, and energy efficiency for reviewing major loads before finalising system size.
Sites drawing above roughly 100 kW of demand are usually already on a medium-voltage connection, commonly 11 kV, and some larger or multi-building sites connect behind their own step-down transformer rather than at the TNB boundary. Both arrangements are routine for an industrial project — they change where the protection study, single-line diagram and switchgear tie-in happen, not whether the project is feasible. Power factor also matters more on a large motor-heavy load than on an office; see the power factor / kVArh penalty guide for how a poor power factor already costs a site money independent of solar.
For manufacturers whose site can't host enough rooftop for their load — or who want grid-delivered green power without an installation at all — CRESS provides physically delivered green electricity via the TNB grid, and utility-scale projects sized well beyond rooftop capacity fall under the LSS5 large-scale solar programme instead of a rooftop EPC scope.
Park-specific guides cover the manufacturing profile and grid context of several major Malaysian industrial parks — see the industrial parks overview — including:
- Pasir Gudang Industrial Area, Johor
- Senai Airport City, Johor
- Shah Alam Seksyen 15, Selangor
- Pulau Indah Industrial Park, Selangor
- Kulim Hi-Tech Park, Kedah
- Batu Kawan Industrial Park, Penang
From project brief to commissioning
Every industrial project follows the same sequence, though the depth of the engineering step depends on voltage level and connection complexity:
- Project brief received — tariff, bills, shift pattern and site details.
- Remote engineering review — tariff category, MD history and first-pass sizing.
- Site verification — roof, switchgear, single-line diagram and protection study (after the booking (20% of the system price, capped at RM20,000), credited in full to the system price).
- Solar ATAP application and TNB approval.
- Installation, commissioning and performance verification.
What documents does an installer need to quote a commercial solar project?
For an industrial site the same four core documents apply as for any commercial project, plus the load data that shows when the demand peak happens.
| Document | What it tells the engineer |
|---|---|
| 12 months of TNB bills (minimum 6) | Tariff category, monthly kWh and maximum-demand history |
| Roof plan or layout | Usable area across blocks, roof material and structure |
| Single-line diagram (SLD) | Connection voltage, protection and switchgear tie-in |
| Photo of the TNB meter and main switchboard | Meter type and breaker capacity |
| Half-hourly data and shift schedules, if available | When the demand peak falls against sun hours |
