KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 10 — Annual electric vehicle (EV) usage has increased significantly to 44,813 units in 2025 compared with 3,127 in 2022, said the Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry (MITI).
The rise was driven by government initiatives that introduced exemptions on import duty and excise duty for imported completely built-up (CBU) EVs from 2022 to 2025 to stimulate domestic market adoption.
“In line with the National Automotive Policy 2020, which targets Malaysia to become a production and export hub for Next Generation Vehicles (NxGVs), the government continues to encourage the local development of critical EV components.
“(For example), this includes batteries, electric drive motors and advanced driver assistance systems through tax incentive provisions to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that utilise them,” it said in a written reply to the Dewan Rakyat published on the Parliament website today.
MITI was responding to Batu MP Prabakaran Parameswaran's query about the government's measures to ensure Malaysia does not lag behind global EV trends, including the development of local electric vehicles, batteries, and smart charging stations by 2030.
“The next phase is to encourage more OEMs to implement local EV assembly,” it said.
Following the expiry of import duty and excise duty exemptions for CBU EVs on December 31 last year, OEMs have begun shifting towards local assembly activities as part of their commitments and operational strategies in Malaysia.
MITI added that 5,624 public EV charging units had been installed nationwide as of December 31, representing 56 per cent of the overall target.
