Toyota To Invest RM8 Billion in Indonesia For EV Development

Toyota Motor Corporation is planning to further increase its investment in Indonesia for EV development. We're talking Rp 27 trillion (around RM8 billion) for the next five years until 2027.

And this is not the first time, too. Toyota has already invested Rp 14 trillion (around RM4.19 billion) since 2019 following Toyota's promise of Rp 30 trillion (around RM8.2 billion) between 2020 to 2025. Quite an investment to tap into the EV industry, particularly in Southeast Asia.

One of the results is the xEV Center, an institution that provides training in automotive electrification and digitalisation, particularly to local engineers within the country. The xEV Center is also a collab between Indonesia's state energy company, Pertamina, and mining holding company, Inalum.

In other words, Toyota has got it locked down for EV production in Indonesia.

Toyota is 'serious' about electrification

According to Shigeru Hayakawa, vice chairman of the board of directors of Toyota Motor Corporation, "We hope that with this increase in investment in Indonesia, the Indonesian government will understand our seriousness towards the electrification of motorized vehicles."

Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, also commented by stating "I believe that the demand for electric vehicles, both four-wheeled and two-wheeled in Indonesia and  ASEAN in the future, will continue to increase. Indonesia can be used as an industrial base for electric vehicle (EV) production to be marketed in ASEAN and in Indonesia itself."

Toyota bZ4X coming to Malaysia soon?

We're not entirely sure when UMW Toyota's first EV model will enter the Malaysian market, but it probably won't take too long from now. We've recently reported that the UMW Toyota HQ in Shah Alam, Selangor, has already installed a number of DC fast chargers within its compound.

They're still not operational just yet, but some folks have indicated that it might be open for public use for all brands to use, and they're most likely on a pay-per-use basis. But then again, it won't just end there.

The arrival of the Toyota EV is imminent, and the initial investment for DC chargers within the headquarters says a lot without saying anything at all. Brace yourselves, that EV wave is about to get a whole lot bigger.