ISKANDAR PUTERI: More electric vehicle (EV) charging stations will be built to cater to the increasing usage of such vehicles in the country, says Science, Technology, and Innovation (Mosti) Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.
The move was part of the ministry’s target of building 5,000 EV charging stations under the national carbon-neutral 2050 initiatives, he said.
“As of now, there are 611 EV charging stations at 366 locations across highly populated city areas such as Johor Baru, Kuala Lumpur and Penang.
“The charging stations are also built at strategic locations such as shopping malls for the convenience of EV users,” he said after the Campuses for Electric Vehicle Expeditious Roll-Out (Clever) programme launch held at Educity Indoor Stadium here yesterday.
Dr Adham said there were now 9,364 EVs in the state, comprising 2,946 motorcycles, 6,339 cars and 79 buses and trucks.
On the programme, he said it was aimed at speeding up the process of making Malaysia carbon-neutral by 2050.
This was achievable through strengthening EV technology, he said, adding that the government has shown its commitment by providing tax incentives for EV ownership as announced under Budget 2022.
“As the ministry responsible for achieving the carbon-neutral target, Mosti will continue to improve and develop EV technology through the 10-10 Malaysian Science, Technology, Innovation and Economic (MySTIE) Framework.
“As a sign of support for the development of a domestic EV industry, the government has proposed to provide full exemptions on import and excise duties and sales tax, as well as road tax (up to 100%) for EVs,” he said.
This was also in line with the National Automotive Policy 2020 (NAP 2020), National Transport Policy (NTP) 2019-2030 and Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint 2021-2030, he added.
Budget 2022 also states that individual income tax relief of up to RM2,500 will be given for buying, installing, leasing or repaying of EV charging facilities.
Educity Iskandar will be the first location for the Clever programme.
It will provide a space for startups and innovators to conduct real-time testing on university campuses in a controlled environment, Dr Adham said.
He added that university campuses were the perfect location and environment for EV testing.
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