The Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH Penang Chapter) welcomes the move by the Penang state government to provide one-off electricity bill subsidy.
It’s chairman Raj Kumar said that the move is welcomed as the hospitality industry has been hit with unprecedented hurdles and obstacles due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We welcome any form of assistance either from the state or federal government as we have been facing the challenges of running the hotel and saving the livelihood of thousands of employees.
“Although it is a small amount for any five-star hotel whose electricity bills may come to more than RM100,000 per month, we hope that there will be more assistance from the state or federal government in the pipeline.
“Nevertheless, we wish to register our sincere thanks to the state government for their proactive move be it big or small,” said Raj who is also the general manager of The Light Hotel in Seberang Jaya when contacted.
Meanwhile, as per the allocation of the subsidy, five-star hotels will receive a subsidy of RM5,000; four-star hotels (RM4,000); three-star hotels (RM3,000); two-star hotels (RM2000); one-star hotels (RM1,000) whereas hotels with orchid ratings 1, 2 and 3 will receive RM800.
Budget hotels and hotels which have yet to receive their ratings will receive RM500; theme parks (RM5,000); tourist attractions (RM1,000) and travel agencies (RM1,000).
The one-off electricity bill subsidy for the tourism industry was announced by the Penang State Government will be open for application effective May 24, 2021.
Penang State Executive Councillor for Tourism and Creative Economy, Yeoh Soon Hin said that the Penang State Government has responded swiftly to Movement Control Order 3.0 by allocating RM1 million for Penang’s tourism industry within 48 hours of the announcement.
“The tourism and creative industries’ sustainability are of paramount importance to the Penang State Government, I hope this subsidy can somewhat alleviate their financial burden in this critical period,” he added in a press statement.
This one-off subsidy will be given to hoteliers, travel agencies, tourist attractions and theme parks within the State, and is open for applications till June 25, 2021.
Parties interested and eligible businesses can visit www.pdc.gov.my to download the application form or email [email protected] for enquiries.