When Malaysia Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, revealed that Geely will be investing US$10 billion (~RM46.6 billion) into Proton Holdings, it had been about bringing in new and transformative change to the Tanjung Malim plant.
Geely’s massive investment will put Malaysia forward as the much touted regional hub for electric vehicles (EVs).
The move will also give Malaysia’s original national carmaker the means to stage a proper comeback to the automotive market and make it big in the EVs scene as well.
According to Anwar, the investment will transform Tanjung Malim into an “automotive high-tech valley” as it highly encourages the establishment and growth of research and development, manufacturing, and innovation sectors.
For Geely and Proton, the end-goal is to make Tanjung Malim the largest auto city for Southeast Asia. This will eventually include getting other EV market players to set up shop in Malaysia and reinforce the country’s position as a regional hub for EVs.
The spillover effects from this investment, which will be mostly used to establish and expand its efforts in Tanjung Malim, include creating thousands of new job opportunities, reinforcing leadership positioning for EV and green vehicle development, and — ultimately — addressing growing demands for EVs in Malaysia.
Notably, Geely’s investment is very much aligned with the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) that Malaysia recently introduced as its primary focus is on EVs, driving economic growth, and increasing work opportunities.
While these bold promises are being made with the massive investment from Geely, there is no concrete evidence that Malaysia can become the regional hub for EVs just yet. In fact, Proton had already considered putting a production plant in Thailand to leverage the strong automotive supply chain that is already in place there. If anything, this can be seen as a move to enhance its plans to grow the EV market here as there is a standing requirement for a strong supply chain.
Does it give some credence to the claim of making Malaysia a regional hub for EV development and manufacturing? It’s hard to tell for now but the massive investment from Geely is still very much welcomed to ensure Malaysia can boost its economic growth.