Sarawak to Revisit Five Dam Proposals as Water Security Concerns Grow
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Sarawak will revisit five earlier dam proposals, but no construction approval has been announced.
Utility and Telecommunication Minister Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi said on Aug. 22 that his ministry, the Rural Water Supply Department (JBALB) and Sarawak Water Sdn Bhd had agreed in principle to review previous feasibility studies for the Tebia, Batang Layar, Sungai Ulu Mukah, Sungai Pesu and Sungai Suhu projects.
The announcement puts the proposals back on Sarawak’s water-planning agenda. It does not mean that any of the five dams has been approved for construction. No project budget, storage capacity, start date, completion date or confirmed service area has been announced. Some reports use names such as Ulu Mukah River Dam, Pesu River Dam and Suhu River Dam; these refer to the same group of locations rather than additional projects.
Julaihi said the review was needed as Sarawak upgrades existing water treatment plants, develops new facilities and extends transmission pipelines. Those investments still depend on a reliable supply of raw water — water taken from a river, reservoir or other source before treatment. A treatment plant can only produce treated water if enough suitable raw water reaches its intake.
The minister also linked the review to dry weather, haze and rising demand towards 2030. During a prolonged dry period, an intake may receive less water or become difficult to operate. A storage dam could help regulate raw-water availability, but it would not automatically increase a treatment plant’s processing capacity or connect a particular town to the treated-water network. The dam, treatment plant, transmission main and local distribution system would all need to be planned as one supply chain.
That distinction matters when looking at recent water disruptions in Kuching and Samarahan. The report said piling works along major roads had damaged underground water pipes and cables, contributing to murky water, low pressure and temporary water, power and telecommunication interruptions. Those incidents involve damage to existing utility infrastructure, while the five dam proposals concern longer-term raw-water storage. A new dam would not prevent a separate construction project from damaging a pipeline, so water security also depends on protecting the network already in the ground.
The next meaningful update will be the information produced by the renewed feasibility studies. Residents and businesses will need to see how much water each location can reliably provide during the dry season, what storage capacity is being considered, which treatment plants and transmission routes would be connected, and how much the projects would cost. Environmental assessments, formal approvals, funding decisions, tender notices and construction schedules would then show whether any proposal has moved beyond the review stage.
Until those details are published, the five locations remain proposals under reconsideration. They should not be treated as approved dams, confirmed construction sites or guaranteed future water sources for Kuching, Samarahan, Mukah or any other specific area.
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