Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd Is Looking At EV Sector

The electric vehicle (EV) business division of CSH Alliance Bhd, Alliance EV Sdn Bhd (AEV), has been acquired by Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd (HSC). This purchase is intended to complement HSC's most recent EV battery manufacturing partnership with EoCell Inc (USA) (EoCell). Lester Chin, executive director of HSC, stated that AEV intends to build the newest EV manufacturing facility to take advantage of Malaysia's rapidly growing EV adoption.

"This is also to increase demand for eco-friendly transportation and the government's active promotion of EV use by offering incentives and subsidies to buyers and manufacturers. "We are also looking to be a contract assembler for other EV brands and players to help them facilitate the set-up of completely knocked-down (CKD) production lines in Malaysia at a later stage," he said. HSC and EoCell previously signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) outlining their intentions to build and establish a regional manufacturing hub in Malaysia for the production of EV batteries as well as other power storage solutions, with the goal of supplying these products to EV producers, assemblers, and users in the Southeast Asian region.

Due to its cutting-edge technology in energy storage solutions and partnerships with manufacturers in Europe and the Americas for the regional markets there, EoCell is a significant player in this market. EoCell also played a significant role in the design and production of plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and electric vehicle (EV) batteries for well-known and significant European automakers. HSC has been chosen by EoCell as its manufacturing partner in Southeast Asia. AEV is currently working with the BYD Group, a global leader in four key industries, through its Malaysian subsidiary, BYD Malaysia Sdn Bhd (BYD). A local assembly plant and a 4S (sales, service, spare parts, and body and paint services) service centre will be established in Malaysia as part of the collaboration, which will also cooperate in the distribution of the BYD T3 model, a fully commercial electric van.

As of right now, AEV is equipped with all the necessary corporate elements to succeed in the EV market. In January 2023, the company was successful in obtaining from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) the manufacturing licence for the assembly of CKD commercial electric vans as well as model approval for the local assembly of commercial electric vans, primarily the BYD T3. Subsequently, AEV also obtained the approved permits (AP) from MITI in February 2023 to bring the complete-built-up (CBU) units of BYD T3 into the country for distribution purposes before the set-up of the local assembly plant on the Tanjung Malim Land. "HSC aspires to play its part in promoting sustainable developments.

"Therefore, as industry players, we need to accelerate the speed of automotive technology innovation and develop new concepts of electric, connected, autonomous, and shared mobility," Chin said.