By Sulyn Chong
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 — Online used-car marketplace Carsome Sdn Bhd (Carsome) is gradually heading towards the electric vehicles (EV) sector, said its ecosystems and sustainability director Denning Tan.
This is because EVs are inevitable and are expected to become mainstream in about three years’ time (2025).
“Carsome is in the business of selling used cars, so there is some delay in terms of what we sell, because it takes time for new cars to become used cars,” he said during the Net-Zero and Circular Economy Forum on the topic ‘Smart Mobility and Zero Emission Vehicle’, at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) earlier today.
Tan added that a flurry of EVs in Carsome’s showrooms will soon be expected, especially with the help of government subsidies that will run for another 18 months.
On the subject of mobility, he admitted it is a very challenging subject to tackle. To this, Carsome recently launched the Carsome Mobility Lab in collaboration with Sunway iLabs.
It is the first auto ecosystem-focused accelerator in Malaysia that seeks to support global tech start-ups to deliver sustainable solutions in Carsome’s existing markets.
The programme saw 30 startups vying for a shot at running a pilot programme alongside Carsome, with two highlighted.
They include peer-to-peer car sharing platform Moovby, and homegrown OEM charging station maker Powered By Rise which constructs end-to-end charging stations for homes and commercial units.
“We believe that with Moovby we will be able to drive up the utility of cars, increase carpooling and reduce the number of cars on the road.
“With Powered By Rise, which is also previously part of the Selangor Information Technology and Digital Economy Corporation’s (Sidec) accelerator cohort, we hope to roll our charging stations in anticipation of EV sales,” Tan told Selangor Journal after the forum.
Besides overseeing Carsome’s ecosystems and sustainable development, he is also responsible for the company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.
“As Carsome moves to a trusted vehicle ownership ecosystem, we hope the accelerator programme will help to tackle mobility problems in Malaysia.
“Mobility is a problem that cannot be solved alone, it needs a collaborative and multimodal approach with strong mandates,” Tan said.
There are currently numerous challenges facing the EV industry, and is common worldwide, a sentiment shared by all the panelists at the forum today.
The panelists were also in agreement that Malaysian consumers are still looking at cost-efficiency in EVs and are concerned about the lack of battery charging stations in the country, even with Kuala Lumpur’s carbon emissions alone charting at 440kgs per second.
The forum was moderated by BEAM Malaysia general manager Justin Tiew Senn, and its panelists included TNB (Regulatory and Advocacy) Program Management Office of Electric Vehicle lead Aisha Daniyal, Eclimo chief executive officer Datuk Dennis Chuah, Mobility Technology Group group chairman Gordon Yu, and Tan himself.
The Net-Zero and Circular Economy Forum is a part of the Smart City and Digital Economy Convention 2022 (SDEC) organised by Sidec under the ongoing Selangor International Business Summit (SIBS) 2022.
With approximately 906 booths from 623 companies, this year’s summit at KLCC commenced starting yesterday and will run until Sunday (October 9), with the aim of receiving some 30,000 visitors during its duration.
SIBS 2022 will showcase six main events, including the Selangor International Expo (SIE) Food and Beverages, SIE Medic, Selangor Industrial Park (Spark) Expo, the Selangor Asean Business Conference (SABC), the Selangor Smart City and Digital Economy Convention (SDEC), and the Selangor Research and Development and Innovation Expo (SRIE).
Three other events will also be held concurrently, including the Selangor International Culinary Festival (SICF), the Selangor International Healthcare Conference (SIHC) and the Asian Smart City Conference: Mayors Summit and Selangor Declaration.
