Tenaga Nasional Bhd has said that it will allocate RM90 million over a two-year period to build direct charging (DC) stations for electric vehicles (EV) in the country.
Its programme director of project management office for electric vehicles, Mohd Junaizee Mohd Noor, said TNB had already built three charging stations at the Rest and Service (R&R) areas in Ayer Keroh, Melaka; Tapah, Perak; and Paka, Terengganu.
“We are targeting to build seven more DC stations in Malaysia by the end of this year along the North-South Highway (PLUS).
The utility giant said it will have 10 DC EV throughout the highway by year-end it was also in discussions to build DC stations along trunk roads.
“With these DC stations we want to reduce range anxiety and at the same time encourage the use of EV in the future,” he said. Challenges faced by EV charging service providers, for now, is the approvals needed from local authorities for various forms and types of charging stations.
“Every PBT has its own regulations and these should be streamlined soon to ensure this problem can be resolved. I hope with nationwide coordination, the period for approval from PBT can be shortened to two months at least,” he added.
Other problems faced included the lack of suitable space or place to install the charging stations. TNB will also be open to cooperating with local companies interested in providing the place while it extends the electricity supply.
