Commercial solar Malaysia: compare SelCo, ATAP and PPA proposals
Decision details
In this guide
What should a shop or factory prepare before asking for solar quotes?
Ask for a site-specific proposal using your bills and an interval load profile. Opening hours, production shifts, weekends and shutdowns determine how much generation can be consumed on site. Record future expansion separately from existing demand; a seller’s assumed growth is not measured consumption.
| Input | Shop / SME | Factory / warehouse |
|---|---|---|
| Load | Opening hours, refrigeration, cooling and closed days | Shift patterns, process loads, motor starts and planned shutdowns |
| Roof | Landlord permission and lease duration | Structure, usable area, waterproofing, roof replacement and tenure |
| Bill | Actual kWh and applicable tariff | Actual kWh, billed maximum demand (MD) and interval data |
| Contract | Total payments, minimum commitment and exit terms | Performance obligations, maintenance responsibility, buyout and removal |
Should a business choose SelCo or Solar ATAP?
SelCo is the self-consumption route; use zero export income in a SelCo financial scenario. An export-credit proposal requires confirmation of eligibility, approval conditions and settlement terms for your actual premises. Do not transplant home-credit assumptions, old NOVA examples or ATAP capacity rules into SelCo design.
Ask the appointed provider to identify the current Energy Commission rules and SEDA application route, with the relevant utility requirements. Have it state applicable capacity, connection studies, licensing, protection, storage or standby requirements in writing. This page does not establish your site’s regulatory eligibility or tax entitlement.
Does the 85% maximum-demand limit apply to every business solar system?
No. The 85% figure belongs to a particular programme and category; it is not a general limit for every Malaysian business installation. Check the jurisdiction, scheme, customer class, connection voltage and current programme notice before sizing a system.
| Published rule | Capacity basis and scope | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Peninsular NOVA Category A | Maximum inverter output is 85% of NOVA contractual MD; published net-offset ceiling 1,000 kW. MD uses the 12-month average or a declared value where history is shorter. Low-voltage consumers also face a 60% fuse-rating cap for direct metering or a 60% CT-rating cap. [source] | Not a universal business or domestic solar cap. |
| Peninsular NOVA Category B | Maximum inverter output is 100% of NOVA contractual MD; the published 5,000 kW ceiling applies to net offset and virtual aggregation. The same LV fuse/CT limit applies. [source] | Do not substitute Category A's 85% figure. [source] |
| Peninsular Solar ATAP, non-domestic | Maximum inverter output is up to 100% of Solar ATAP Contract MD, subject to technical/network assessment and a 1,000 kW cap. [source] | ATAP is a separate scheme; its capacity rule and export-credit settlement are not interchangeable with NOVA. |
| Peninsular SelCo | Self-consumption with no export under the cited ST guideline; comply with applicable technical and regulatory limits. [source] | The cited Peninsular SelCo rule is not the NOVA 85%-of-MD rule. [source] |
| Sabah SELCO-PV Sabah 2.0, non-domestic | Published maximum inverter output is 85% of existing MD; without battery, MD is assessed during 6am–6pm. [source] | This Sabah rule cannot be transplanted to Peninsular NOVA, ATAP or domestic systems. |
These are scheme-specific published rules, not a site approval or a promise that applications are currently being accepted. The guideline version/date alone does not prove that a programme window is open. Confirm the active application period with the programme administrator and obtain written utility/authority requirements for the premises. Also distinguish panel rating in kWp (DC) from inverter output in kWac (AC); a quoted panel size is not automatically the regulated inverter capacity.
Sources: ST Peninsular NOVA guideline, July 2026, ST NEM Rakyat/GoMEn revised guideline, 19 August 2026, ST Peninsular SelCo guideline, SEDA Solar ATAP, ST Solar ATAP guideline, GP/ST/No. 60/2025 (see §§8.3–8.5), ECoS SELCO-PV Sabah 2.0 guideline.
How do outright purchase and a PPA differ?
| Question | Own the system | PPA / third-party ownership |
|---|---|---|
| Who invests? | Record your upfront price, financing and confirmed cash incentives | Record your actual upfront obligation and quoted energy / contract payments |
| Who maintains it? | Budget the responsibilities left with your business | Check the provider's obligations and excluded work |
| What if use changes? | Recalculate self-use and usable export | Check minimum purchases, escalation and unused-generation obligations |
| What if you leave? | Check roof tenure, removal and disposal costs | Check termination, transfer, buyout and end-of-contract ownership |
“Zero upfront” describes one payment feature. It does not establish lower lifetime cost. Compare every proposal over the same period and load assumptions. Ask for the escalation schedule and who bears downtime, roof repair and system removal costs.
Does solar automatically reduce factory maximum demand?
No. Energy savings and billed MD are different calculations. A proposal claiming lower MD must show how output or storage coincides with the interval that determines your billed peak, including cloud and production-shift scenarios. The calculator below adds no MD saving or tax relief. Request a separate evidenced calculation for either benefit.
Which providers can a business approach?
Verdant publicly presents commercial and industrial services. Compare its actual proposal with the provider shortlist and equivalent-quote worksheet. Betulkex’s agency referral eligibility for business projects remains unconfirmed, so this page does not offer a residential referral as a business quotation service.
How do I compare the cash scenarios?
Use a representative month’s proposed generation, on-site use and usable export. Enter your own capital, actual monthly payment and operating costs. Repeat this assessment for each competing quote. The stress input is the percentage of expected energy value retained, not the percentage removed; it does not calculate seasonal production, asset degradation or full-lifetime returns. For a PPA, exclude capital paid by the provider from your own investment.
Betulkex solar quote scenario: home, shop or factory
Use figures from your proposal and load assessment. Enter zero where no credit or rebate has been confirmed.
Inputs are your scenario assumptions, not measured results. Use the incremental import saving applicable to your tariff, excluding fixed charges that remain payable. For factories, this calculation excludes MD savings and tax relief. Under SelCo, enter zero export credit. A PPA payment is the actual quoted payment; do not also count the provider’s system cost as your capital.