THE Jinn Pinn Minn (JPM) Group and CETA Green Technologies Sdn Bhd have announced a project to develop Asean’s first electric vehicle (EV) battery testing facility in Malaysia, said CETA deputy chairman Chin Tzer Jinn.

Their aim is to place Malaysia at the forefront of the green technology boom with the hydrogen-powered testing, development and certification hub.

“The facility will take about 12 to 24 months of gestation period. The factory will have test chambers that can test the batteries from end to end.

“It will take about 12 to 15 months to bring in those chambers and we are currently in the end stage of our planning,” he said.

He said they are finalising a few possible locations around the Klang Valley to host this facility in the next year.

“We hope to get this facility operational by 2025. We believe we will be the first in Asean to provide this end-to-end testing.

“There are some other regional battery testing facilities, but from what we understand they are not as comprehensive as what we intend to do.

“They might be specific in certain areas, but we intend to cover the full range of battery testing.”

The project is expected to see an initial capital investment of between US$35 million (RM160.6 million) and US$50 million.

Chin said JPM and CETA have engaged with the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry (Mosti) to develop policies and details set for execution.

“One of the things it (Mosti) will be doing is designing its own battery pack and manufacturing it for export.

“This facility will become very handy for certification as we will test their design and durability of their batteries that are proven for the public to use.”

He said most leading EV battery manufacturers are from China.

“There are some local manufacturers who want to get into that, so we will support them in getting their batteries certified for the market.

“We will be doing the quality control process for the batteries, then it will go back to the manufacturer where it will be produced for the mass consumers.

Chin said that JPM and CETA have been engaging with regional car manufacturers, saying the automakers want to produce EVs but have to send their batteries to Europe for testing.

“We have regional players who intend to do their business (testing) here.

“They are keen on our testing facility as the time zone is about the same, faster communication and the cost is more competitive than sending it to Europe.”

Chin said there exists a market for battery testing, which is a much-needed service that will benefit all EV manufacturers. – July 13, 2023.