Kuching, 1 December 2022 – Around 800 experts of diverse fields of research, innovation and commercialisation from 17 countries gathered for Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) seventh World Engineering, Science and Technology Congress (ESTCON) 2022.
For the first time since its inauguration in 2010, the latest edition of ESTCON2022 convened in Borneo Convention Centre Kuching Sarawak for two days beginning December 1.
Themed “Future Energy & Smart Communities”, the renewed and enhanced congress delved deeper into the energy transition and transformation in nurturing a sustainable future, in line with PETRONAS’ energy transition initiatives to move towards Net Zero Carbon Emission (NZCE).
The Congress was officially opened today by YB Datuk Roland Sagah Wee Inn, Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development Sarawak.
ESTCON2022 was co-organised by Universiti Malaysia Sawarak (UNIMAS), Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB), FPT University Vietnam and Multimedia University (MMU).
The congress was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation of Malaysia (MOSTI), Academy of Sciences Malaysia, Sarawak State Government through its Business Events Sarawak, Human Resource Development Corporation (HRDCorp) and the Malaysia Board of Technologists, Board of Engineers Malaysia, Alliance of Government Linked Universities (GLU), UTP’s HICoE-Centre for Biofuel & Biochemical Research (CBBR) and Yayasan UTP (YUTP), with PETRONAS as the main partner.
Targeted at the academic fraternity, those from industry, government and non-government organisations, policy makers and the public, ESTCON2022 offered a platform for like-minded individuals to keep abreast of the latest research and innovations, share knowledge, build connections and establish collaborations.
“The Congress covered a wide range of topics, from innovation, engineering and technology to humanities, addressing the latest trends and challenges.
A UTP flagship event, ESTCON2022 is the largest congress in the world with eight international conferences held concurrently.
The eight conferences were in tandem with UTP’s objectives and goals, and allowed the university to open up new frontiers, pioneer research, create new technology, and introduce innovative solutions and methods for sustainable developments that brought mutual benefits to society. Each of these conferences will focus on different issues pertaining to their respective themes.
The conferences were International Conference on Digital Transformation and Intelligence (ICDI), International Conference on Emerging Smart Cities (ICESC), International Conference on Sustainable Oil Recovery and Digital Solutions (ICSORDS), International Conference on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ICESG), International Conference on Future Trends in Smart Communities (ICFTSC), International Conference on New Energy (ICNE), International Conference on Renewal Energy and E-Mobility (ICREEM) and International Conference on Sustainable Processes and Clean Energy Transition (ICSuPCET).
ESTCON2022 featured two prominent keynote speakers, plenary speakers and forum panellists who shared their expertise, including trends and issues on energy transition and smart communities from a global perspective.
The first keynote speaker was Dr Nick Wayth, CEO of Energy Institute in the UK who delivered his address on ‘Just Energy Transition: Strengthening Energy Security and Achieving Carbon Neutrality’. Meanwhile, Kamarul A Muhamed, founder and CEO of Aerodyne Group, a global drone technology, data technology and digital transformation company, was the second keynote speaker and spoke on ‘Internet of Cities: The Adaptation of AI in Tailoring Smart Cities’.
Speakers for the plenary sessions were NanoMalaysia Bhd Vice President of Strategy and Special Projects, Tengku Kahar Muzaffar Tengku Mohd Yusof who spoke on ‘Malaysia’s Hydrogen Economy and Technology Development Initiatives’, ASEAN CIO Association Vice President (Cybersecurity & Governance), Dr Carrine Teoh Chooi Shi who spoke on ‘Cybersecurity X Cloud: Everything You Need to Know’, University of Yamanashi Clean Energy Research Centre’s Professor Junji Inukai who offered an insight into ‘Why Japan Needs Hydrogen’, and Gentari Green Mobility Sdn Bhd Head of Planning & Commercial Muhammad Asyraf M Apandi who spoke on ‘Policies that Accelerate the Energy Transition of Green Mobility’.
Over the two days, participants also engaged in discussions at the forums on ‘The Role of Hydrogen Economy in Tackling the Energy Trilemma’, ‘The Impact of the Energy Transition on Petroleum Engineering and Geoscience Graduates’ and ‘Powering Circular Economy and Smart Cities Through Blockchain Technology’.
These sessions featured panellists from local and international organisations and industry players such as PETRONAS Senior Vice President of Project Delivery and Technology and Chairman of UTP Board Datuk Bacho Pilong, President of Arts et Métiers Professor Laurent Champaney, LanzaTech CEO Dr Jennifer Holmgren, and Deleum Bhd CEO Rao Abdullah, just to name a few.
Sponsors of the congress were Sarawak Energy Berhad, Dialog Group Berhad, Agilent Technologies, Velesto Energy Berhad and Transwater.
