Govt counting on Proton, Perodua to produce electric cars by 2027: Miti

KUALA LUMPUR – The government is pushing for local carmakers to produce electric vehicles (EV) by 2027 and make them affordable for the masses, an International Trade and Industry Ministry official said.

Its industrial development senior director Datuk Hanafi Sakri said the ministry and relevant agencies have been involved in a series of meetings with Proton and Perodua recently.

“We hope to assist them in producing a new EV model in the next three to four years,” he told a press conference after the opening of Malaysia’s EV Conference 2023 here today.

The inaugural EV event, themed “Gearing up for EV Revolution: The Malaysia Story” was officiated by International Trade and Industry Minister Senator Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz at the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) headquarters in KL Sentral this morning.

Hanafi said Proton and Perodua were expected to present proposals to the government soon.

Without affordable electric cars in the domestic market, Hanafi said it would be difficult for consumers to make the transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to EVs in the future.

Under the Low Carbon Mobility Footprint, Malaysia aims to achieve at least 15% of electrified vehicles, including hybrids, out of the total industry volume (TIV) by 2030, and 38% by 2040 under the National Energy Policy 2022-2040.

“Currently, electric cars are dominated by luxury brands such as BMW and Tesla, which are beyond the reach of the majority of our population.

“So we hope that with this initiative, we can meet the target of about 15% of TIV by 2030,” Hanafi said.

The government has targeted 10,000 public charging facilities by 2025, comprising 9,000 units of alternating current types and 1,000 units of direct current types.

“By the end of this year, there will hopefully be between 3,000 to 4,000 charging stations available and we are working hard towards 10,000,” Hanafi added.

To gain public confidence, he said, the ministry would regulate the operation of the charging stations.

“We hope the charging stations will be able to run 24/7 so that the consumers will be protected when charging at a particular time and place,” he said, adding that there are 900 charging stations so far nationwide.

Mida deputy chief executive officer for investment development Lim Bee Vian said that the government was targeting RM20 billion worth of investment from global EV players by 2025.

“We hope to double that to RM40 billion in investments in the next five years,” she said, adding that the investment recorded in the EV sector was RM14.7 billion in the last five years.

She said the names of these marques would be announced soon.

“Apart from investment key performance indicators, we are focusing on a more targeted approach because we want to bring in investors that can actually develop our ecosystem.”

“Part of our new energy policy is to bring investment with more sustainable eco-friendly and create high-value jobs, which will bring Malaysia’s EV ecosystem to the next level,” Lim said.

Malaysia Automotive, Robotics and IoT Institute chairman Datuk Phang Ah Tong asserted that the EV market has been experiencing exponential growth globally.

“Last year, the global passenger car market was 58 million units, of which 10.5 million were EV, and this was an increase of 55% compared with 6.7 million units produced in 2021,” he said. 

EV growth in Malaysia, he added, showed a steady rise with 257 units in 2021 and 1,860 units up to October last year.

“Sales of EVs using batteries experienced a 440% jump consecutively over the same period,” Phang also said.

There were more than 15,000 units of EVs (plug-in hybrid, hybrid, and full-battery electric vehicles) nationwide last year. – The Vibes, February 14, 2023