16 Jul 2022
TM Tree-Planting Campaign latest in group’s ESG efforts to achieve sustainability targets
TM Towards a Sustainable Tomorrow campaign latest in TM’s comprehensive efforts to achieve Net-Zero emissions by 2050 and improve business operations and social impact.
Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) today launched an initiative titled Program Kelestarian Hari Esok TM: Kempen Penanaman Pokok (TM Towards A Sustainable Tomorrow: Tree Planting Campaign) – an expansion of its short- and medium-term ESG commitments towards environmental sustainability, operational improvement, and value creation for the wider community.
Aligning with the Government’s Penghijauan Malaysia (Greening Malaysia) programme and international aspirations namely the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement, this campaign is the latest in TM’s commitment to plant 12,000 trees throughout the country by the end of 2022, to offset greenhouse gas emissions and slow down the impact of climate change.
This campaign follows closely on the back of TM’s earlier Gutta Percha tree planting programme, which saw the planting of 5,000 Nyatoh Taban Merah heritage trees in 23 locations in conjunction with World Telecommunications and Information Society Day 2022 – which also garnered a Malaysia Book of Record recognition.
Launched at the Sultan Idris Shah Forest Education Centre, Puchong, TM’s latest campaign was graced by YB Datuk Ali Anak Biju, Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. Also in attendance were YBrs Ahmad Norhad Zahari, Secretary of Communication Technology, Ministry of Communications and Multimedia; Amin Abdullah, Chief Executive Officer of Yayasan Hijau Malaysia; Professor Dato’ Dr. Abdul Mua'ti @ Zamri Ahmad, Director, Centre for Strategy and Corporate Relations, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM); Tan Sri Mohammed Azlan Hashim, Chairman of TM’s Board of Directors; and Imri Mokhtar, TM’s Group Chief Executive Officer.
Co-organised with Yayasan Hijau Malaysia, Jabatan Perhutanan Semenanjung Malaysia and UPM, the campaign supports the Government’s commitment to plant 100 million trees by 2025, with 5,000 trees being planted during this latest effort, and another 2,000 to be planted in the later part of the year.
60 Warga TM (TM employees) participated in planting the first 100 trees, with all of TM’s designated tree-planting sites to be known as “unifi Green Zones”.
YB Datuk Ali Anak Biju said, “Malaysia serves as a habitat for thousands of flora and fauna species and is the ‘green lung’ for oxygen generation and carbon storage for Malaysia and neighbouring countries. Our rainforests and bio-diverse ecosystems remain popular ecotourism destinations for local and international tourists, and serve in furthering environmental research and education.
“Over the last decade, tree planting initiatives have intensified to mitigate the effects of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change stemming from commercial and industrial activities and population growth.
“I am proud and grateful to see corporate organisations, government agencies as well as NGOs and education institutions collaborating on green initiatives with greater commitment, such as today’s event by TM and its partners. I hope more corporate companies will follow in their footsteps to help us realise our Greening Malaysia goals,” he added.
Tan Sri Mohammed Azlan explained, “Our ESG commitment is something we take seriously as it aligns with our transformation towards becoming a human-centred technology company. This pledge is reflected in our innovative solutions and services, and our efforts to improve business operations and fulfil our social responsibility to our customers, partners and communities.”
“In addition to tree planting, TM’s Klang Valley Core Data Centre, Iskandar Puteri Core Data Centre and KL City Data Centre have been powered by renewable energy since January 2022 – significantly reducing the impact of our business operations while supporting the nation’s digitalisation. We have achieved an 11% emission reduction in Q1 2022 against the baseline year of 2019 – putting us on track to achieve our goals of reducing emissions by 30% in 2024, 45% by 2030 and Net-Zero by 2050,” he shared.
TM also continues to strengthen its social and governance pillars – continuing to serve as the nation’s connectivity leader and providing high speed internet access to at least 70% of premises nationwide. The Group has also ensured 30% women representation among its Board of Directors and Senior Management, and works with organisations such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to uphold zero-tolerance towards corruption. TM continues to maintain the highest standards of corporate governance in all its partnerships and undertakings.
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TM and Telin collaborate to enable opportunities and enhanced experience for the region’s digital ecosystem
TM Wholesale, the wholesale domestic and international business arm of Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) and Telin, a subsidiary of PT Telkom Indonesia, Tbk (Telkom), have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strategically collaborate and jointly explore opportunities on subsea cable business arrangements. The signing ceremony was held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Dubai recently, where TM was represented by Amar Huzaimi Md Deris, Executive Vice President of TM Wholesale and Telin was represented by its Chief Executive Officer, Budi Satria Dharma Purba (Budi). This new partnership will further strengthen the Business to Business (B2B) relationship between the two parties and broaden the collaboration while continuing to provide their customers with reliable, diversified and uninterrupted connectivity solutions. Commenting on the partnership, Amar Huzaimi Md Deris, Executive Vice President of TM Wholesale said, "TM Wholesale is committed to deliver greater reachability and resilient connectivity to our customers. This collaboration allows us to gain immediate submarine capacity in response to the growing demand for high bandwidth services. It also gives us more diverse connections and alternative routes connecting Malaysia to the rest of the world, while optimising our existing submarine capacity. Additionally, it will enable us to begin exploring the most cost-effective approach for future submarine cable investment projects that will benefit both parties and this region." Meanwhile, Budi Satria Dharma Purba (Budi), Chief Executive Officer of Telin said, "Telin and TM Wholesale share mutual interests, with the aim of serving our stakeholders with excellence. This time, we are excited to jointly explore opportunities in buying, selling, upgrading and investing activities, especially with regard to subsea cables. Telin's participation in global connectivity focuses on ensuring reliable connectivity in order to meet surging demand for fast internet due to trends such as flexible working arrangements, video streaming, and gaming. We believe that this collaboration will serve our stakeholders' needs accordingly." Currently, TM has 30 submarine cable systems, owned and leased, spanning more than 320,000 kilometres around the globe and Telin has 22 submarine cable system, owned and leased, with over 222,260 kilometres. Together, both parties can leverage on their respective capabilities to provide the highest service performance and best quality experience to all its customers. TM has been a long-standing partner of Telin in many aspects related to business solutions and are mutually delighted to work together in supporting ASEAN and other region's future digital demands for connectivity, digital infrastructure and solutions.
TM JOINS CANDLE SUBMARINE CABLE SYSTEM CONSORTIUM TO CONNECT MALAYSIA AND ASEAN COUNTRIES TO JAPAN
KUALA LUMPUR, September 22, 2025 – TM, Meta, SoftBank Corp., IPS Inc., PT XLSmart Telecom Sejahtera Tbk, and NEC Corporation are collaborating to develop the Candle submarine cable system. Candle is a 24-fiber pair, 8,000 km submarine cable system connecting Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, that is scheduled to begin operations in 2028. It will contribute to infrastructure expansion and secure redundant routes to meet the increasing demand for data communications driven by 5G and AI. This cable system will be one of the first in the Asia-Pacific region to use a 24-fiber pair cable, enabling superior traffic capacity to support the growing demand for communications in the region. Chairperson of the Candle Management Committee, Don Pang, said: “Candle represents a pivotal advancement in fortifying the region’s digital infrastructure. As the need for robust, high-speed connectivity grows, Candle will deliver greater network diversity and resilience along this essential corridor, leveraging state-of-the-art technology. This milestone reflects the deep collaboration among our partners and underscores our shared commitment to advancing digital inclusion and economic opportunity for over half a billion people in the Asia-Pacific region.” The partners from participating countries also provided their comments on the importance of this new system. Amar Huzaimi Md Deris, TM’s Group Chief Executive Officer said, “TM’s participation in the Candle submarine cable system project demonstrates our commitment to building resilient digital infrastructure that meets the growing demand for digital services and cloud-based, AI-driven innovation across Asia. It strengthens our ability to support hyperscalers, enterprises and global service providers in expanding their footprint across ASEAN, while reinforcing Malaysia’s role as ASEAN’s digital hub. This initiative bodes well with our aspiration to become a Digital Powerhouse by 2030—connecting Malaysia to the world, and the world to Malaysia.” “At Meta, we imagine a future where everyone has access to AI, personal superintelligence, and other emerging technologies to improve their lives and connect with each other. This is part of our commitment to seamlessly bring people together no matter where they are in the world.,” said Nico Roerich, Director, APAC Network Investments, Meta. “With the rapid advancement of generative AI and the Internet of Things (IoT), the demand for international telecommunications is expected to continue accelerating. CANDLE adopts a 24-fiber-pair architecture, making it one of the core foundations of next-generation social infrastructure that SoftBank is promoting. By integrating with other submarine cables such as JUPITER, ADC, and E2A, we will further enhance the diversity and redundancy of global communications networks originating from Japan, and strengthen Japan’s role as a digital gateway for Asia,” said Kimimasa Kudo, Vice President and Head of Global Business Division, Enterprise Unit, SoftBank Corp. "Our participation in this project reaffirms our commitment to play a significant role in the further development of digital infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region, which is vital to our operations in Japan, the Philippines, and Singapore. With our subsidiary, InfiniVAN, as the landing party in the Baler, Aurora Province on the eastern seaboard of the Philippines, this is one of many projects we have planned in support of developing the Philippines as a connectivity hub in Southeast Asia." said Koji Miyashita, CEO of IPS, Inc. “XLSMART will fully support the project and we believe the Candle cable will bring benefits for all consortium parties and Indonesia”, said Feby Sallyanto, Chief of Enterprise, PT XLSmart Telecom Sejahtera Tbk. Tomonori Uematsu, General Manager, Submarine Network Division, NEC Corporation, added, “NEC is a leading vendor in the submarine cable system business with over 60 years of experience. NEC is particularly strong in leading subsea projects in the Asia-Pacific region, having been responsible for eight optical submarine cable systems connecting Japan and Singapore, including ‘Candle.’ In this project, NEC will participate as a system integrator, providing everything from the manufacture of submarine cables and repeaters to route design, installation, and testing. Through the establishment of a highly reliable communication environment in the Asia region, NEC will contribute to the development of the digital economy.” This initiative is a milestone in collective partnerships and commitment to strengthening regional connectivity, ensuring secure and reliable international data transmission, and advancing the digital growth of communities and businesses across ASEAN.
TM Joins Asia Link Cable System Consortium To Boost Submarine Cable Capacity From Malaysia To Asia
KUALA LUMPUR, 14 September 2023 - TM Global, the domestic and international wholesale business arm of TM, solidified its commitment to advancing Malaysia’s digital landscape by announcing its recent participation as a consortium member of the Asia Link Cable System (ALC). This strategic move positions Malaysia as one of the key destinations connecting Malaysia to Hong Kong SAR. Asia Link Cable; image credited to HMN Tech TM’s entry into the consortium was made official during the signing of the Construction and Maintenance Agreement (C&MA) with all consortium members held in Penang recently. The current seven members from the ASEAN and North Asia regions include Singapore Telecommunications Limited (Singtel); China Telecom Global Limited (CTG); China Telecommunications Corporation (CTC); Globe Telecom (Globe) and DITO Telecommunity Corporation (DITO) of the Philippines, Unified National Networks Sdn Bhd (UNN) of Brunei and Global Transit Singapore Pte. Ltd (GTS). Commenting on this partnership, Khairul Liza Ibrahim, TM Global’s covering Executive Vice President said, “Our inclusion in the ALC consortium marks another milestone in TM Global’s ongoing efforts to position Malaysia as a digital hub in the region. “Malaysia emerged as the region’s top destination for technological investment, particularly data centre businesses. Leveraging our strategic location, the ALC is expected to attract more international submarine cables to land in Malaysia and entice global technology players to leverage our data centres. “This strengthens our efforts to provide reliable, diversified and uninterrupted global connectivity solutions to customers. It also enables us to better support the deployment of hyperscalers’ data centres, and deliver to the future requirements of 5G networks in the country,” she added Spanning a total distance of approximately 7,200 km with an initial design capacity of 24Tbps, the Cable Landing Station (CLS) for ALC will be strategically located at TM Exchange Kuala Sedili, and will capitalise on its proximity to TM’s Iskandar Puteri data centre in Johor. The Sedili CLS is the sixth international CLS in the country, including Kuala Muda, Morib, Mersing, Cherating and Melaka. Its construction is projected to be completed by 2025. The ALC will significantly boost the data-transfer capacity of TM’s existing submarine cable systems, catering to the increasing bandwidth demands across the ASEAN and North Asia regions. Furthermore, the ALC adopts an open cable system design that is adaptable and compatible with various technologies and upgrades. This better positions TM and other consortium members to address the growing bandwidth demand for higher data capacity. With 32 owned and leased submarine cable systems spanning more than 340,000 kilometres around the globe, TM is committed to providing the highest service performance and best quality experience to customers domestically and internationally.
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