KUALA LUMPUR: Corporate giants like Tenaga Nasional Bhd and Sime Darby Bhd are Malaysian businesses on the cutting edge of sustainable practices and this bodes well for the equity investments coming into the country.
The companies have moved from transitioning to sustainable practices to now actually practising sustainability at the heart of their operations and contribute towards creating a dynamic economy in the country.
This was the assessment of Forum for the Future chief executive Dr Sally Uren who took part in the Sustainable Brands Conference 2016 here today.
Sime Darby is not only engaged in sustainable activities in its plantations operations but also in its property development unit with projects that embrace and widely incorporate nature within residential development.
Recent reports have said that the conglomerate is active in the creation of sustainable palm oil value chain and the company works with small plantations that have achieved the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification for their operations, for example.
TNB, meanwhile, has been reported to be part of the national programme to allow households to sell the excess electricity generated by solar photovoltaic systems at homes to utility companies.
These companies make Malaysia a dynamic economy and are bold in their sustainable agenda, Uren said.
ECB Capital chief executive officer and executive director Mohd Amir, when contacted by Business Times, said that stocks of companies engaged in sustainable practices will attract foreign investors.
In the area of energy stocks, for example, Amir said, foreign investors see these companies as being cost efficient and non-polluting.
The investment costs for energy companies to move towards wind turbines or solar panels is one-off and the energy you gain is perpetual because it is powered by wind and the sun, he said.
The two-day Sustainable Brands conference which started yesterday, ends today.