PETALING JAYA: Clean energy solutions provider Gentari Sdn Bhd today launched South-East Asia’s first 350kW public charger for electric vehicles (EVs) at X Park Sunway Serene located in the Sungai Way Free Trade Industrial Zone here.
The EV charging hub, rolled out by Gentari in partnership with EV Connection Sdn Bhd (EVC), comprises one 350kW super charger – the fastest public charger in South-East Asia, as well as two 180kW DC fast chargers and five AC chargers made up of two 22kW and three 7kW chargers.
Gentari also said the hub would be the first to offer a kilowatt-hour (kWh)-based pricing mechanism, as opposed to the time-based pricing currently practised by other players in the charging space. It said the new pricing model is fair to customers as they pay for how much electrons they pump into their batteries.
The fee is RM1.20 per kWh to use the 350kW charger, which has two charge points to "fuel up" two cars at the same time. In this case, the charger would split the power into 175kW for each car and the fee is still the same. The rate is RM1 per kWh for the 180 DC fast chargers. AC charging is 55 sen per kWh.
Depending on existing charge of cars, the 350kW charger will make light work of charging, with users expected to wait less than 30 mins to top up to 80% charge - which is pretty good for now. That's enough wait time to freshen up in the washroom or grab a cup of coffee.
The chargers at X Park are free to use for EV owners until Dec 14, according to a Gentari official. After that, users have to pay for charging via the Jomcharge or Setel app.
The DC chargers can be set up to support dynamic charging, which is a way for charging operators to share and optimise charging capacity.
In dynamic charging, the power released from the charging session of electric car A can be transferred to electric car B when car A asks less and less power towards the end of the charging session as is typical of EV batteries.
The charging cables are liquid-cooled and hence are narrower and lighter for users to handle.
X Park is notable for being the first EV charging hub in Malaysia to be licensed by the Energy Commission (EC), which ensures the safety of the facility’s structure and operations with an aim to improve confidence in Malaysia’s EV charging ecosystem.
X Park was chosen as an EV charging hub because of its strategic location. It is well-positioned to serve residential and business EV users around Petaling Jaya who are looking for reliable and convenient charging facilities with a shorter charge time. X Park is also equipped with F&B and entertainment options offered for the convenience of drivers while they charge their EVs.
Gentari and EVC’s upcoming charging hub currently under construction at the Bangi Golf Resort also received a licence from the EC. It is set to open next month.
Following the launch of the 350kW charger here, Gentari arranged a fleet of EVs for members of the press to drive to the Bangi resort to check out the charging hub facilities. The cars heading to Bangi included BMW iX and iX3; Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kona Electric; Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric; Tesla Model 3; and the Ora Good Cat.
A highlight at the Bangi hub are the three Kempower DC fast chargers from Finland configured with four charging guns. Between them, they share 200kW and are able to charge dynamically as well. One cool feature of the slim advanced chargers is the ability to mirror the information on a user's smartphone by scanning a QR code on the Kempower display.
The information on the phone is exactly the same as shown on the Kempower display and the user can flip through the different layers of charging info as if he was at the display - useful when one is away from the charger and wants to get an updated status.
“Gentari’s new high-speed charging hub at X Park Sunway Serene is expected to contribute significantly towards supporting a viable EV ecosystem by improving range confidence for EV drivers with a focus on the urban charging experience," said Gentari’s chief green mobility officer Shah Yang Razalli.
"As the first charging system to be licensed by EC, we are pleased to support efforts to standardise and govern Malaysia’s emerging green mobility sector, towards boosting consumer confidence."
Shah said Gentari is looking to establish more DC fast chargers along highways, adding that ideally such chargers should be set up every 80km along the stretch. He said the fast chargers would initially be installed at Petronas stations but Gentari is also open to working with other fuelling operators and premises with high traffic flow.
“We hope that the provision of a diverse range of affordable and accessible fast-charging infrastructure at X Park, Bangi Golf Resort and future licensed installations nationwide will help spur the EV adoption rate among Malaysians," said EVC managing director Lee Yuen How.
With the upcoming hub at the Bangi Golf Club soon to join its network, Gentari is focused on offering a mix of hubs in quick-moving high traffic areas such as X Park as well as leisure destinations such as Bangi Golf Club, to seamlessly blend EV charging with other routine activities.
Since its formation in June 2022, Gentari has made notable progress in providing range confidence among EV users by deploying 117 charging points across 20 locations in Malaysia and a total of 133 charging points in India.
With a mission to be Asia Pacific’s preferred green mobility solutions provider, the Petronas subsidiary aims to capture 10% market share (circa 25,000 charging points based on current estimates) across key markets in Asia Pacific by 2030.
In the mid-term, Gentari aims to install 9,000 public charging points by 2026, with an anchored presence in Malaysia and India.
Oh, if you are wondering how the name Gentari was coined, it's like this. The name Gentari is a combination of the English word "Generation" and Malay word "Lestari", which means sustainable. Mesh the two words together and a new company is founded.
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Shah (left) and Lee posing with the 350kW charger.
