The origins and early development of electricity production in Malaya are closely connected with the tin mining industry and with European participation in it. The present constitutes a turning point for the electricity supply industry since mining now consumes less than half the Federation's total electricity output; moreover, this share is expected to decline further in the future as a result of the fastgrowing demand from industrial, commercial, and domestic consumers. Official projections for the next three decades envisage a tenfold increase in demand and the establishment of an integrated West Coast transmission system.