SHENZEN, 2 December 2025 – The Faculty of Chemical & Energy Engineering (FKT) of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and the School of Environment and Energy (SEE) of Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School (PKUSZ) formalized their partnership through the signing of a Letter of Cooperation (LoC), targeting a wide-ranging collaboration in the broad areas of Environment and Energy. The agreement was completed through the signing of the LoC documents by Prof. Dr. Mat Uzir Wahit, the Dean for FKT and Prof. Dr. Qin Huapeng, his immediate counterpart in SEE. The three-year cooperation, effective from 2 December 2025 aims to enhance academic collaboration, student and staff mobility, joint research, community outreach, and other mutually beneficial shared initiatives.
The LoC between FKT and SEE marks a significant step in forging UTM’s first formal partnership with Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School (PKUSZ), part of China’s leading university, ranked no. 14 in the 2025 QS World Ranking. This collaboration strengthens UTM’s international presence and aligns with the university’s aspirations for global eminence.
This collaborative agreement builds upon a track record of successful recent activities between FKT and SEE. One notable activity is the UTM’s International Industrial Training Program (IITP) where five highly talented third-year FKT students embarked on a 10-week research placement at PKUSZ (14 July to 5 October 2025), immersing themselves in frontier research projects in energy and environmental science. Their research topics ranged from biochar production from water hyacinth for supercapacitors, photocatalytic carbon dioxide (CO₂) reduction, advanced water purification, cyanobacterial biotechnology for biofuel or carbon capture and photocatalytic alkane-to-alkene conversion. The studies were conducted to directly contribute towards the global efforts put up by scientist, researchers and engineers to address real current challenges such as sustainable energy, pollution mitigation, and renewable materials. Institutional support during the IITP included financial assistance for travel and living expenses by UTM, while PKUSZ offered tuition waivers and campus accommodation — demonstrating the shared commitment to an equitable and effective collaboration model.
On another note, FKT’s Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zainul Akmar Zakaria, FKT’s Manager for External and Global Engagements, also had the chance to visit SEE to further strengthen academic links. During the visit, Dr. Zainul was hosted by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Xu Qiyong, SEE’s Deputy Dean for Research, who also acted as the official Resource Person for PKUSZ for this LoC, where both sides reviewed current collaborative activities, discussed on potential joint-research work as well the mobility programmes, including dual-degree and student exchange possibilities. Dr. Zainul also had the chance to tour SEE’s research facilities including the Research Laboratory of Ecological Environment and Resource Efficiency and the Nanshan Energy Eco-Park. These prior engagements have created a solid foundation of trust, mutual respect, and shared vision, making the LoC a natural and timely next step.
“This partnership between FKT and SEE marks a significant leap forward in our global engagement efforts. Having seen the excellent performance of our students during the 2025 IITP placement at PKUSZ, we are confident that this formal cooperation will open even greater opportunities for joint research, mobility, and innovation in environment and energy. Together, we aim to produce researchers and engineers capable of addressing the pressing sustainability challenges of our time,” – Prof. Dr. Mat Uzir Wahit
“We are very pleased to take our collaboration with UTM to the next level. The visit by UTM-FKT’s Dr. Zainul and the success of their students during the recent internship at SEE have demonstrated strong synergy and shared ambition. Through this LoC, we look forward to deepening our cooperation and delivering high-impact research, joint training programmes, and cross-cultural academic exchange for the benefit of both institutions and global green development,” – Prof. Dr. Qin Huapeng
It is envisaged that the newly signed LoC would paved the way to various sustained activities including joint academic programmes (seminars, workshops, curriculum cooperation), co-supervision of postgraduate students (enhancing research output and cross-institution mentoring in the areas of renewable energy, environmental technologies, water treatment, bio-materials, sustainability science), student mobility (research attachments, industrial training, inbound/outbound academic exchange), staff mobility (facilitating exchange of knowledge, best practices, cross-cultural capacity building) as well as community outreach and sustainability programmes (leveraging both institutions’ strengths to address environmental and energy challenges potentially translating research into real-world impact in both Malaysia and China).
