Malaysia is at a pivotal crossroads. With the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) charting an ambitious course toward a greener, more resilient electricity grid, and the government targeting 70 per cent renewable energy capacity by 2050, the demand for skilled engineers in the electrical power sector has never been greater.

Yet one of the most underleveraged resources in this transformation remains the same one that has been overlooked for decades – women.

The numbers tell a sobering story. Despite women comprising more than half of Malaysia's university graduates, female representation in electrical engineering programmes and the power sector workforce remains strikingly low.

According to data from the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM), women account for less than 15 per cent of registered electrical engineers. In power utilities and grid infrastructure, the very backbone of the energy transition, that figure is even smaller.

This is not merely a diversity statistic. It is a strategic gap that Malaysia cannot afford to ignore.

Why electrical power engineering needs women now

The energy transition is not just a technical challenge; it is a sociotechnical transformation.

Decarbonising Malaysia’s grid requires rethinking how electricity is generated, transmitted, stored, and consumed. It demands engineers who can design smart grid systems, integrate large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) farms and battery energy storage systems (BESS), develop grid-forming inverter technologies, and ensure protection and stability as conventional synchronous generators give way to inverter-based resources.

These are precisely the kinds of multi-dimensional, systems-thinking challenges where women consistently excel. Research across STEM fields globally has shown that diverse engineering teams, those that include women and varied perspectives produce more innovative, robust, and community-sensitive solutions.

In the context of energy policy, this matters enormously. Energy poverty, household energy efficiency, and community acceptance of renewable infrastructure are issues where women’s lived experiences and insights can directly translate into better engineering outcomes.

A career as broad as the grid itself

A career in electrical power engineering is far broader than many young women realise. The sector spans an exciting range of specialisations:

• Grid planning and system studies – analysing power flow, fault levels, and stability to plan future grid expansion as renewables scale up.
• Protection engineering – designing relay coordination systems that safeguard equipment and personnel in increasingly complex hybrid grids.
• Renewable energy integration – engineering the interface between solar farms, wind installations, and the national grid, including inverter control design.
• Energy storage engineering – optimising BESS dispatch strategies for grid balancing and ancillary services.
• Smart grid and AMI systems – developing advanced metering infrastructure and demand response platforms to empower consumers.
• Research and academia – advancing knowledge on emerging technologies, mentoring the next generation, and influencing national energy policy through evidence-based research.

Each of these pathways offers intellectual depth, social purpose, and strong career prospects, qualities that resonate strongly with the values of today's young women professionals.

Breaking the perception barrier

One of the most persistent barriers is not aptitude, it is perception.

Many young women still associate electrical engineering with physically demanding fieldwork or an exclusively male culture. While the profession has historically leaned that way, the landscape is shifting rapidly.

Modern power engineering is as much about computational modelling, data analytics, policy advisory, and research as it is about working in substations. Tools like DIgSILENT PowerFactory, PSS/E, MATLAB, and digital twin platforms are reshaping the profession into one that rewards analytical rigour and creative problem-solving.

Universities, industry, and professional bodies must work together to dismantle these outdated perceptions. Targeted outreach programmes in schools and polytechnics, visible female role models in the sector, and structured mentoring pathways can all play a decisive role in shifting the narrative.

A call to action: for women, industry, and policy makers

To young women considering their future: electrical power engineering is not just a career, it is a calling to shape the infrastructure that will define Malaysia's prosperity, sustainability, and energy security for generations. The national grid of tomorrow needs your intelligence, your creativity, and your commitment.

To industry leaders and employers in the energy sector: invest in inclusive hiring, flexible career pathways, and leadership development programmes that retain talented women beyond their early career years. The return on that investment will be measured not only in workforce numbers but in the quality and resilience of the solutions your teams will produce.

To policymakers: embed gender-inclusive workforce targets within the NETR implementation framework. The energy transition will be more just, more effective, and more enduring when it is built by engineers who reflect the full diversity of the society it serves.

Malaysia's energy future is bright. Let us ensure that the engineers who build it are too.

-- BERNAMA

Ir Ts Dr Renuga Verayiah is a senior lecturer, researcher and consultant specialising in electrical power system and renewable energy integration for modern power systems at Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN), Malaysia.