The electrification of the tin mining in Kinta Valley: Role of Perak River Hydroelectric Power Company (1927‒1940)

Abstract

Electricity, first introduced in Colonial Malaya as early as the 1890s, and by the 1920s became the major source of power in the tin-mining industry. Surprisingly, despite its vital role in the economy, electricity has received little attention in Malaysian historiography. In the country’s main tin-mining center, Kinta Valley, Perak, the Perak River Hydro-Electric Power Company with its head-office in London, played a significant role in supplying electricity for mine operator. Since early 1920s, British Government aimed to develop hydroelectric power by building dams on the Perak River. They viewed the Perak River as an important source of hydroelectric power for electrifying Colonial Malaya especially for tin mining-industry. Financial constraints forced the British Government, however, to hand over responsibilities to the PRHEPC. This article aims to identify how PRHEPC managed the development of electricity supply facilities and its significance to the tin miners in the Kinta Valley before 1940. The PRHEPC diversified its energy facilities development strategies to guarantee electricity supply to mine operators covering a wide area. Their ability to exploit the Perak River through the construction of a large-capacity hydroelectric station and the strategy to combine steam generation and grid supply systems allowed the PRHEPC to effectively supply electricity to a large number of mine operators in the Kinta Valley. The development was financially beneficial to the power companies because this capital-saving approach allowed them to generate electricity at a far lower price than the fossil fuel power stations for their consumers. Cheap energy allowed mine operators to minimize the cost of the tin mining operation, particularly the sector shifted from labour-intensive to a capital-intensive business strategy. To dominate the tin mining sector, the operators greatly invested in modernizing mining methods through utilization of machinery such as the high-cost dredges. It was therefore imperative for mine operators to obtain cheap energy to offset the cost of investments. This case study clearly displayed the development of the tin mining sector in Kinta Valley was not merely influenced by electricity use, but also its economical generation through hydroelectric.