KUCHING: Malaysian car maker Proton is hoping for the government to introduce more initiatives to increase production as well as the use of electric vehicles (EVs) in under the revised 2023 Budget which will be tabled next week.
Proton deputy chief executive officer Roslan Abdullah attractive incentives could create more investment opportunities for the country in the automotive industry.
“If possible, we hope the government can provide attractive incentives as this will attract investors to Malaysia and could perhaps turn the country into a manufacturing hub for EV components and vehicles.
“Another factor from this is that it can also give consumers the confidence to switch to EVs,” he said during a programme with Sarawak media practitioners at Lepau Restaurant here yesterday (Feb 14).
Looking at the present scenario of the automotive market, EVs are becoming popular as many countries have taken the decision to phase out vehicles that are powered by fossil fuels, he said.
“Therefore, Malaysia cannot afford to be left behind in this matter, and Proton, as one of the national car companies, needs to take the lead by producing and introducing EVs,” he said.
As a start, he said, Proton is partnering with EV brand Smart Automobile Company (Smart) to import, distribute and sell Smart vehicles in the country.
“The company is expected to launch the Smart #1 (an all-compact SUV and fully electric smart car) in the fourth quarter of this year.
“The Smart #1 has already been released in China and we will distribute and sell it as a Completely Built Up (CBU) vehicle,” he said.
Roslan said Proton now has a fully-owned subsidiary company, Proton New Energy Technology (Pro-Net), to promote, distribute smart vehicles and provide after-sales service.
“To make sure the vehicle can be owned, serviced and maintained, we have also sent the first batch of 16 engineers to Geely (China multinational automotive company) to be trained on EV technology.
“EV is a new technology, and we need more young experts in this field,” he said.
“Our (Proton) plan is also to introduce completely knocked down (CKD) or locally assembled vehicles at the production facilities in Tanjung Malim.
“We also have plans to develop our own EV, but this will be announced when the time comes to avoid any speculation,” he said.
Also present were Proton vice president for Sales and After-Sales Edmund Lim and its After-Sales director Wan Hazran Wan Mustafa.
