KUALA LUMPUR: Petronas Dagangan Bhd (PDB) plans to deploy DC fast EV charger at Petronas stations in collaboration with Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd and EV Connection Sdn Bhd.
Petronas today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mercedes-Benz Malaysia and EV Connection for the deployment by the first half of 2022.
The partnership aims to address EV drivers’ pain point of insufficient fast chargers in Malaysia.
Under the collaboration, PDB will install the fast chargers at five Petronas stations in the pilot phase, to enable end-to-end coverage between North-South Expressway and part of East-Coast Expressway.
Petronas vice president of marketing Ahmad Adly Alias said the collaboration signified another major stride in the company’s efforts to provide cleaner energy in enriching lives for a sustainable future.
Adly said PDB had provided EV charging facilities at its stations since 2017 and one opportunity that the company had identified was the demand for faster charging facilities during long distance travel, especially along major highways.
“Through this partnership, fast chargers will be available at strategic locations leveraging our wide network of Petronas stations, making customers’ life simpler and better.
“We view this investment in EV charging facilities a necessary step towards promoting the adoption of EVs in Malaysia,” he said.
The tripartite collaboration is also aligned with PDB’s future-proof strategy given the inevitable shift to cleaner mobility in the future.
Mercedes-Benz Malaysia vice president of sales and marketing Michael Jopp said it would be introducing a range of its premium all-electric models to define the future of mobility.
Jopp said this was in line with Mercedes-Benz’s global strategy to go all-electric by the end of the decade where market conditions allow.
“Therefore, we are fully committed to invest in our local infrastructure together with PDB and EVC to encourage the EV adoption among the Malaysian drivers,” he said.
EV Connection managing director Ir Lee Yuen How said as one of the early EV charging solution providers, the company had always believed in the potential of EVs in Malaysia.
In support of the Malaysian government’s Budget 2022, Lee said EV Connection was happy to expand the JomCharge DC fast charger network in the country.
“Given the clear policy from the government, we believe that next year will be a tipping point for EV adoption in Malaysia.
“This partnership is a big step forward to support Malaysia in the transition to EVs as part of our low carbon mobility blueprint,” he added.
Source: New Straits Times
