The pre-launch uncertainty ended on 19 December 2025 when PETRA's media statement formally confirmed Solar ATAP's launch on 1 January 2026. Until then, installers like us were operating on the strong assumption — but not the certainty — of a January launch. The December confirmation triggered the customer queues we'd staged through Q4 2025 to start submitting on day one.
- Official launch date: 1 January 2026
- Programme name: Solar ATAP (Akses Tenaga Atap)
- Operator: SEDA Malaysia (applications) + TNB (grid connection) + ST (compliance)
- Replaces NEM 3.0 which closed to new applications in late 2025
- Continuous enrolment — no fixed national quota cap
What the PETRA confirmation meant in practice
For installers, it triggered the application wave. We'd been telling customers from September onwards "design now, file in January" — and on 1 January 2026 the SEDA portal opened in line with the launch and TNB pushed updated grid-connection workflow forms. By mid-January, our application desk was processing residential designs continuously without the quota-anxiety calls that defined NEM 3.0's last six months.
How the launch sits in the 2026 calendar
Solar ATAP launching on 1 January anchors a sequence of related 2026 moves: the GITA merger in early January, net-metering technical upgrades that fed forward into Solar ATAP, and the May 2026 launch of SuRIA Home as a residential cash-back layer on top. Cohesion across these announcements gives 2026 a much more organised policy posture than the staggered NEM-era rollouts we used to navigate quarter by quarter.
What this means for your application timeline
If you're starting from scratch in mid-2026, the timeline is now well-defined: system design and quote with a SEDA-registered installer like us (1-2 weeks), SEDA application (typically 2-3 weeks processing), TNB grid-connection approval (2-4 weeks), then installation and commissioning (1-3 days for residential). Total: roughly 4-8 weeks. See our step-by-step application guide for the current document checklist and what we handle versus what you supply.
Source
This summary is based on reporting from PETRA Media Statement (PDF). Read the full original report at the source link for the publisher's complete coverage.