Decide how you want to own and pay for the system
Begin with the arrangement that fits your site, cash flow and responsibilities:
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| Arrangement | How it generally works | What to confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Buy the system using your own funds | Your business pays for the installation and owns it | Total installed cost, maintenance, performance support and your remaining cash reserves |
| Buy using a loan or Islamic financing facility | You own the system and repay the financier under the agreed terms | Eligible costs, your contribution, fees, security and payment schedule |
| Lease the system | You pay to use the system; ownership during and after the lease depends on the contract | Payment changes, maintenance, insurance, end-of-term ownership and termination costs |
| Buy electricity through a power purchase agreement (PPA) | You pay for electricity supplied under the provider's contract | Price, minimum commitments, contract length, performance responsibilities and what happens if you move |
A provider's proposal should explain what it will supply, who owns the equipment and what you must pay. The Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) Malaysia's Solar ATAP portal describes purchase, PPA and leasing arrangements. Ask which costs are included and which still fall to your business.
Keep your site's future in mind too. If you rent the premises or may relocate, confirm the landlord's consent, the remaining lease term and how removal or a transfer would work.
Confirm how the electricity will be used or credited
Your electricity route affects the financial case. The Solar Accelerated Transition Action Programme (Solar ATAP) took effect on 1 January 2026 in Peninsular Malaysia. SEDA describes it as a continuation of the earlier Peninsular Net Energy Metering (NEM) programme. Its NEM 3.0 page states that the quota offer ran until 30 June 2025 or until all quotas were allocated, whichever came first. That deadline did not end every existing installation's operating period. Check the terms of any existing NEM approval separately.
Start with the source for your location and proposed arrangement:
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| Location and route | Original reference | What to confirm for your proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Peninsular Malaysia: Solar ATAP | Energy Commission's Solar ATAP guideline | Electricity used on site, permitted exports, credit basis and duration, connection conditions and programme acceptance |
| Peninsular Malaysia: self-consumption (SelCo) | June 2026 self-consumption guideline | On-site use without grid export, technical requirements and any additional equipment or charges |
| Sabah | Energy Commission of Sabah (ECoS) SELCO-PV Sabah 2.0 guideline | Sabah-specific eligibility, technical and application requirements |
| Sarawak | Sarawak Energy's NEM information | The local scheme, connection requirements and available network capacity |
For business participants, the Solar ATAP guideline uses a market-based export credit rather than the full retail electricity tariff. Keep electricity used on site and exported electricity separate in the forecast, and ask which credit assumptions the provider used. Clauses 3.6.1 and 4.1 of the issued guideline state that exported electricity can offset electricity used only within the same billing period; unused export credits are forfeited. The programme's operating period is also limited to ten years from its start date. Ask how the forecast treats unused exports and the years after that period.
Confirm your account category, required technical assessment and whether applications are currently being accepted with the provider and relevant authority. The published programme information does not mean that your site is approved.
Build a cash-flow view of the project
Ask for a proposal that separates the technical estimate from the money you expect to save or receive.
Useful inputs include:
- Your electricity use: bills and, where available, data showing when the business consumes power.
- Expected generation: the supplier's estimate, its assumptions and what could affect output.
- Electricity used on site: how much generation the business is expected to use itself.
- Any exports: whether they are permitted, the credit or payment basis and how long the arrangement applies.
- Project payments: your contribution, loan repayments, lease payments or PPA charges.
- Ongoing costs: maintenance, insurance, metering, connection work and expected equipment replacement, where relevant.
For a factory running during daylight hours, compare when the solar system is expected to generate electricity with when the factory uses it. A business with a different operating pattern may need a different design or financial case.
Ask which electricity-bill components could fall and which remain payable. Have the supplier and financier show how the forecast changes if commissioning is delayed, output is lower or costs rise. You can then discuss whether the payment schedule still fits your business.
Explore bank financing with the actual documents
For small and medium enterprises (SMEs), these are two published business examples:
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| Example | What to explore | Original documents |
|---|---|---|
| CIMB SME Renewable Energy Financing-i | Financing for solar-system expenditure and the business/project records needed | Product page · Disclosure sheet |
| RHB SME Green Renewable Energy and CAPEX Financing | Renewable-energy equipment and other efficient business assets; CAPEX means capital expenditure | Product page · RHB Bank disclosure sheet |
Use these as starting points for enquiries. Ask whether applications are currently being accepted and which facility fits your business, the equipment and the planned electricity arrangement.
A product disclosure sheet explains the facility's features, costs and risks. Read it alongside your written offer: check repayments, fees, rate changes, security and any guarantor obligations. RHB's linked bank disclosure covers conventional (non-Islamic) financing. If you are offered Islamic financing or hire purchase, ask for that product's own disclosure sheet.
For a broader explanation of project lending and the sustainability evidence involved, read Green Loans in Malaysia.
Match support to the right applicant and project
GTFS guarantee support
The Green Technology Financing Scheme (GTFS) publishes guarantee support under version 5.0, including the energy sector. The official GTFS summary states that the programme period ends on 31 December 2026.
The portal advertises GTFS 5.0 applications as open. Confirm the remaining allocation, whether applications from your category are being accepted and the bank's financing terms before including support in your budget. Our GTFS guide explains the published coverage and questions to ask.
Green tax incentives
The applicant's role matters. A business acquiring an asset for its own use, a renewable-energy project operated for income and a solar-leasing provider have different tax routes.
The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) explains which agency handles each type of application: own-consumption asset applications go to the Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Corporation (MGTC); business-purpose projects and solar-leasing incentives go to MIDA.
Timing differs too. MIDA's business-project guideline requires application before qualifying capital expenditure for the renewable-energy project route. MGTC's own-consumption asset guideline describes submission after commissioning—once the system has been installed and put into service—with its own time limits and conditions.
Check the relevant route before committing costs. The published guidelines describe 2024–2026 windows; confirm the current instructions and how your proposed electricity arrangement is treated. A provider's tax eligibility also needs to be assessed separately from yours.
Prepare a focused enquiry pack
Bring your site details, electricity records, supplier proposal, cost breakdown and available business financial information. Explain who will own the installation, which electricity route you are investigating and how the payments will be covered.
Note any pending site consent, technical assessment, connection, licensing or programme requirement. Ask the installer and relevant authority which steps apply, and ask the financier when it needs evidence of completion.
Our Financing Readiness checklist helps you organise the full pack, including the data and reporting responsibilities after funding.
For renewable-energy projects beyond rooftop solar
MIDA's renewable-energy guidance includes activities involving biomass, biogas, mini hydro, geothermal, solar and wind. Each project needs its own technical, regulatory and funding assessment.
For a project supplying energy for income, prepare to discuss the resource or feedstock, site rights, approvals, construction plan and who will buy the output. Show how the expected income supports operating costs and repayments. A rooftop-solar loan example does not indicate the financing terms available for these projects.
If you are considering solar for your home
Use the household product's eligibility and disclosure documents. Business facilities and household offers have their own conditions.
For example, Hong Leong Islamic Bank publishes Solar Plus Financing-i for residential rooftop solar linked to eligible property financing. Read its September 2026 product disclosure sheet, including property security, repayments and fees, and ask what applies to your home and installer.
Keep the electricity-saving estimate alongside the financing costs. If you instead use an ordinary personal loan, assess its affordability and terms separately; buying solar does not automatically mean that the loan meets a sustainable-finance framework.