City Energy, a gas supplier under Singapore’s state-backed conglomerate Keppel Corp, entered the EV charging market through a collaboration with Malaysia’s EV Connection.
Using City Energy’s Go app, drivers can search for charging stations, schedule a recharge and make payments whether they are in Singapore or Malaysia. This is the first such cross-border app for both countries.
City Energy will spend S$100 million (US$72.7 million) through the end of the decade, starting with the installation of charging stations in 13 residential developments.
EV Connection’s network of charging stations, most of which will be installed alongside Malaysia’s North-South Expressway, is expected to grow to about 70 by the end of the year.
Because City Energy has its roots as a public utility, the company monopolises Singapore’s gas supply business. Although the company does not release its earnings, business is stable, given its customer base of over 870,000 households in a country of 5.5 million people.
But amid the global shift toward decarbonisation, City Energy seeks to transform itself into an “energy as a service” company, stating with access to EV changing stations.
Competition is intense. France’s TotalEnergies leads the Singapore EV charging market, and there are five other major rivals, including the homegrown player Charge+.
Perry Ong, CEO of City Energy, said the Go app will distinguish itself through added value, which comes from the convenience and peace of mind gained from a cross-border platform. The company appears to be considering expanding the app to Thailand as well.
Meanwhile, energy giant Shell is rushing to build a super-fast EV charging network. In January, the oil major installed a 180 kW charger at a gas station in the southern tip of the Malay peninsula, billed as the fastest charger in the region.
The charger can charge Porsche’s Taycan EV 80% in 30 minutes. Until now, 50 kW had been the mainstream output for super-fast charging.
Shell will install 12 super-fast chargers along highways in Malaysia, with locations to be added in Thailand and Singapore as well by the end of the year at the earliest.
Shell’s chargers will target the affluent who purchase high-end EVs. The rates are relatively expensive, with the super-fast chargers requiring a RM835 ringgit (US$190) monthly fee, and regular chargers costing RM20 ringgit every five minutes.
The plan is to add the superchargers to its proprietary Recharge app, allowing users to locate and pay for the chargers in the three countries. Shell aims to create a network of over 5,000 chargers across Asia, excluding China, by the year 2025.
Amr Adel, senior vice president at Shell, said that the app can be used across the border in the same manner as in the home country, and that the company aims to provide a comprehensive array of digital services.
Strong EV sales in Singapore and anticipated growth inside the region make the region an attractive market for charging station.
The Singaporean government announced the goal of making every vehicle in the city-state run on clean energy by 2040. The number of EV chargers in Singapore are expected rise to 60,000 in 2030 from 1,800 last year. The number of EVs in the country reached 2,942 units in 2021, up 2.4 times from the previous year. EVs accounted for 3.8% of all new auto sales last year.
Singapore has the highest per-capita income in Southeast Asia at about US$60,000. Malaysia and Thailand are also ahead of Indonesia, which boasts per capita income of roughly US$4,000.
Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand occupy the top three spots in Southeast Asia in terms of the number of consumers who are considering purchasing a new energy vehicle as their next auto, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte.
But concerns about battery capacity remain an issue in purchasing EVs.
“I want to drive in my new Tesla to see my older sister in Kuala Lumpur, but I can’t do it because I’m too worried about charging,” said a woman in her 30s who works at a Singaporean financial group. The trip takes three hours by car, which she said she has frequently made with a gasoline vehicle.
In Europe, the rise of cross-border charging networks, such as Digital Charging Solutions, has helped promote the spread of EVs on the continent.
Southeast Asia’s EV market looks like that of Europe a decade ago, said Andrey Berdichevskiy at Deloitte.