Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd plans to channel more capital into strengthening the power system and supporting local semiconductor companies as AI drives the next investment cycle, its chief told Reuters on Monday.
Surging AI computing needs were reshaping what is “investable” in the AI boom, with energy supply and grid resilience being central to competitiveness, Khazanah Managing Director Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir said in an interview at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos.
“What it does need is computing power and what computing power means energy. So that’s when we think about capturing some of that growth,” Amirul Feisal told the Reuters Global Markets Forum.
While global investors have been pouring money into data centers, he said Khazanah would instead focus on infrastructure.
“We are really looking at the energy part, so again looking at grid resilience,” he was quoted as saying, adding that cheap and reliable power, including renewables, would be critical as AI infrastructure scales up.
Khazanah was also “seeing how we can help fund some of the capital requirements of our semiconductor players to move up the value chain to advanced packaging,” Amirul Feisal said.
According to the report, Malaysia has been rolling out industrial policies to strengthen its role in the global chip supply chain.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had said in May 2024 the government aims to attract at least MYR500 billion($123.40 billion) in semiconductor investment, supported by at least $5.3 billion in fiscal incentives, and that it plans to build up local capabilities in chip design and advanced packaging.
Incorporated as a public limited company on 3 September 1993 and commencing operations in 1994, Khazanah is owned by the Minister of Finance (Incorporated), with the exception of one share held by the Federal Land Commissioner (Incorporated).
Khazanah invest across all levels of the Malaysian economy – from listed Malaysian companies to emerging sectors – as well as internationally across markets, asset classes, sectors, and geographies. The country’s second-largest lender CIMB Group and national carrier Malaysia Aviation Group are among its portfolio.
Its net asset value rose 22 percent to MYR103.6 billion ($25.57 billion) in 2024 from MYR84.8 billion a year earlier.
Amirul Feisal said Khazanah expected its international portfolio share to rise gradually over time.
Asked about the ringgit, he said there was “room” for the currency to strengthen depending on the U.S. dollar, citing uncertainty over the path of U.S. interest rates, but did not specify a level.