Batam News Asia

21/11/2025

Indonesia’s COP30 scandal is a wake-up call for Southeast Asia. When fossil fuel lobbyists shape national climate policy, the world pays the price. Read the full investigation.

The 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, was expected to be a crucible of climate ambition—a summit that would sharpen global commitments rather than dull them. Instead, it delivered an unsettling revelation about the quiet but corrosive influence of fossil fuel interests insi...

21/11/2025

Australia is enforcing one of the world’s toughest social media bans for users under 16, pushing Meta and other platforms into urgent age-verification crackdowns. The move raises global debates on youth safety, privacy risks, and access to information. Read full details in the article.

Australia enforces one of the world’s toughest youth social media bans starting 4 December.

21/11/2025

Malaysia’s palm oil giants are transforming vast estates into solar-powered industrial parks to support the region’s booming AI data centre demand — reshaping Southeast Asia’s tech and energy landscape. Read full details in the article.

Palm oil giants race to power Southeast Asia’s booming AI infrastructure with solar-ready industrial parks.

21/11/2025

Malaysia’s New AI Frontier: Palm Oil Estates Pivot to Data Centres.

Malaysia has emerged as one of Asia-Pacific’s fastest-growing data centre hubs, fuelled by more than US$34 billion in investments since 2020 from global giants including Google (US$2 billion), Microsoft (US$2.2 billion) and Amazon (US$6.2 billion). With 40% of Southeast Asia’s planned capacity now slated for Malaysia, demand for land and clean energy has skyrocketed.

Palm oil estates, controlling more private land than any other sector, saw an opportunity.

21/11/2025

Southeast Asia’s Rising Innovators: Seven Firms Win Big at the 2025 Emerging Enterprise Awards.

Seven companies from Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong clinched top honours at the 2025 Emerging Enterprise Awards on Nov 20, an annual programme by The Business Times and OCBC Bank. Now in its 18th year, the awards recognise businesses under 10 years old demonstrating innovation, resilience and strong regional scalability.

This year saw nearly 600 applications across diverse industries, with more than one-third coming from Hong Kong, Indonesia and Malaysia. From that pool, 30 finalists emerged, and three companies ultimately won the main Emerging Enterprise Award:

Evo Commerce (Singapore)
Mesh Bio (Singapore)
Dodo Ventures (Malaysia)

21/11/2025

Batam’s Coastal Revamp: Kampung Nelayan Merah Putih Reaches 45% Completion.

The Batam City Government is accelerating the development of Kampung Nelayan Merah Putih, aiming to transform three island communities—Tanjung Banun, Sekanak Raya, and Pulau Kasu—into a modern fisheries hub. According to Batam’s Head of Fisheries Agency, Yudi Admajianto, Tanjung Banun leads the progress, with construction hitting 45 percent by mid-November 2025.

20/11/2025

Billie Eilish didn’t hold back—calling out billionaires, confronting Musk and Zuckerberg, and reshaping the global conversation on wealth and empathy. A cultural reckoning is here.

Billie Eilish—global pop phenomenon, multi-Grammy winner, and cultural barometer—used her platform to ignite a firestorm at the WSJ Innovator Awards on 29 October 2025, launching one of the year’s most unflinching attacks on billionaire power. What began as an acceptance speech for the Music I...

20/11/2025

A rare bloom of Rafflesia hasseltii has become a stark warning: Southeast Asia’s rainforest icon is vanishing fast. Can community-led conservation save it before time runs out?

How the fight to save Rafflesia hasseltii exposes Southeast Asia’s ecological collapse—and the communities resisting it

20/11/2025

Singapore has launched its first needle-free flu vaccine—an intranasal spray offering protection for those aged two to 49. With easier administration and growing public interest, the FluMist Trivalent could boost vaccination uptake and strengthen community protection against seasonal influenza. Read full details in the article.

FluMist Trivalent offers a painless nasal-spray alternative for those aged two to 49.

20/11/2025

China’s latest anti-ageing breakthrough—an experimental PCC1 capsule targeting “zombie cells”—is making waves with claims of extending human lifespan far beyond current limits. While human trials are still required, the discovery is reshaping conversations on longevity across Asia. Read full details in the article.

Shenzhen biotech firm claims PCC1 capsule could extend human lifespan far beyond current limits.

20/11/2025

Pertamina is accelerating upstream development with 23 new oil and gas fields, expanded drilling programs, and major EOR projects to strengthen Indonesia’s energy output. Here’s how the company aims to secure future supply and counter natural production decline. Read full details in the article.

State-owned giant ramps up drilling, EOR projects, and field development to boost national output.

20/11/2025

Johor Water Security: State Invests RM184 Million in New Treatment Plants

The Johor government has announced two major water treatment projects—Semanggar and Layang 2 Phase Two—valued at a combined RM184 million. State Works, Transport, Infrastructure and Communications Committee chairman Fazli Salleh said the Semanggar plant, costing RM70 million with a 50 MLD (million litres per day) capacity, is slated for completion next year to support the Kulai and Sedenak regions.