Vice-president of downstream marketing Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said this reflected the company’s commitment in investing in future technology, especially for carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction.

“It is an investment for the future by investing in technology for the future.

“We believe the time has come for Petronas to make a commitment, so the R&T centre will become not only the platform for petrol but also lubricants,” he told reporters after the launching of the centre here yesterday.

He said the location of the centre which is in close proximity to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) offices in the region also enabled closer interaction with customers.

“When we have a facility like this, it gives much more opportunity for us to get closer to our customers,” he added.

PLI Group CEO Giuseppe D’Arrigo said the centre would play a key role in the company’s ambition of championing CO2 reduction.

“We have quadrupled our investment in research and development since 2015 and made a pledge to spend 75% of our R&D from this year onwards on CO2 reduction,” he said.

He also said establishing the centre in Turin enabled the company to leverage on the city’s expertise in automotive engineering.

“Turin is the world’s automotive capital with all the major OEM’s in this area. They are excellent in terms of engineering and capabilities,” D’ Arrigo said.

Apart from Turin, he said, PLI also had research centres in Malaysia, China, Brazil, the US and South Africa, and would be opening another research centre in India this year.

Asked about the possible listing of PLI, Syed Zainal Abidin said it was always a possibility if the opportunity arose and timing was right.

Nevertheless, he said, the current focus of the company was to build the brand and capability of PLI and make it the preferred choice of vehicles owners.

PLI’s presence spans 90 countries with product ranges from automotive fluids, agriculture and construction lubricants, as well as industrial lubricants.