Ministry Give The Thumbs Up To Electric Vehicle Development

The Ministry of Energy, Green Energy and Water is all for the development of the electric vehicle (EV) industry to reduce environmental pollution caused by vehicles driven by fossil fuel.

Its minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin said his ministry encouraged the development of EV in the country and RM220.5 million had been granted to Proton to carry out research and studies on it.

“In fact several units are now on trial and expected to be available in the market by end of next or latest by middle of 2013,” he said.

Chin told reporters this at a media conference after attending a dialogue session with the staff and students of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) here yesterday.

The development of EV was necessary since transportation was indisputably one of the biggest polluters in the country.

He was unsure of the EV prices except to say that they would depend on the models and sizes, with the smallest below RM100,000 per unit.

“On the marketing aspect, we leave it to Proton to decide but since other motor companies, such as Toyota and Honda, will also bring EV into our market, we believe Proton should be able to offer more competitive prices,” Chin said.

The development of EV was in line with the government’s effort to go green.

In view of the support given by Unimas in promoting and developing green technology, Chin said he would discuss with Proton to provide the university with a unit of EV at least.

Earlier, he presented a RM130,000 grant to Unimas to facilitate development in the fields of energy, green technology and rainwater harvesting under the 1IPTA 1Minister programme.

The grant was received by Unimas deputy vice-chancellor for students’ affairs and alumni, Professor Mohd Fadzil Abdul Rahman.

Originally appeared: TheBorneoPost

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Mass Production For Proton Hybrid Cars In 2011

BANGKOK, Dec 2 (Bernama) -- Proton is hoping to embark on mass production for its hybrid cars by 2011, said its managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Syed Mohamad Tahir Wednesday.

He said it was being developed through collaboration with its Britain-based subsidiary Lotus and several component suppliers like battery manufacturers.

"We have a dedicated team at Lotus to develop and test the car using Lotus technology. I tested the cars two weeks and I am impressed with it," he told Malaysian media on the sideline of the Thailand International Motor Expo here.

Earlier Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, who launched the Expo, was given a briefing on Proton's venture in Thailand and its latest model Exora which hit the Thai market during the expo.

Syed Zainal said several Exora hybrid cars are currently being tested in Britain and would be shipped to Malaysia by end of December or early next year.

Under the second stage, Proton would assemble hybrid vehicles as government fleet vehicles, especially in Putrajaya before going for mass production in 2011.

"This can be expanded to fleet for private sectors like Pos Malaysia, DHL or others who are using big number of vehicles for their business," he said.

He said it was part of Proton's move to support Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's initiative to enhance green technologies for vehicles that could pave way for fuel efficiency and a greener environment.

Asked about the investment involved, Syed Zainal said it was not big as they were working with Lotus and other component manufacturers.

"We are developing the hybrid with battery manufacturers. By doing so, our investment will not be high," he said.

On the pricing, he said it has not been decided yet, but added that it would initially be higher than the conventional models.

Hybrid vehicles, which deliver power by switching between a petrol engine and an electric motor, can save up to 30 per cent on fuel costs but they are more expensive than conventional models.

He also said Proton has been developing electric cars since early this year, using models like Saga, Persona and Exora, adding that mass production would take longer as it needed expensive infrastructures like charging stations and power plants.

source: bernama

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Malaysia to Produce Green Cars

KUALA LUMPUR, - Declaring that this is the way advance, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has called on Malaysian companies to invest in developing green and clean technology for vehicles to further develop the automotive industry in the future.

He said companies could join hands with local universities on research and development and become leaders in developing green and clean technology.

“It is imperative for the automotive industry to think and plan ahead. You need to appraise your viability and how you can value add to stay competitive in the long run,” he said in his keynote address at the Second Kuala Lumpur International Automotive Conference here today.

He said new product development in the industry was imperative to increase market share by raising sales.

On the review of of the National Automotive Policy (NAP), which will be completed by third quarter this year, he said special focus would be given in the development of the automotive parts and components sector.

Muhyiddin said that the review would take into consideration views and proposals by the industry associations, relevant government ministries and agencies.

“The review will provide the roadmap for the automotive industry in Malaysia, to facilitate them in developing their mid and long term plans,” he added.

It would also further improve the existing guidelines, policies and incentives, taking into account the impact of the current global and regional economic situation, environmental developments and many other factors affecting the development of the automotive industry.

Currently, there are more than 690 automotive component manufacturers and about 110 motorcycle/scooter components manufacturers in the country.

He also said there were 45 vendors with the ability to design and develop, source components/parts and manufacture the whole module/component for the vehicle manufacturers.

NAP, which was implemented in 2008, has attracted investments for 135 projects valued at RM2.37 billion.

via kereta.net

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