eRoaming Hub Alliance: Unifying EV charging in Malaysia

Four of Malaysia’s top EV Charge Point Operators (CPO) — chargEV, DC Handal, JomCharge and Carput Zap — are teaming up to solve a long-standing pain point for local EV drivers: fragmented charging apps and accounts.

The newly formed eRoaming Hub Alliance aims to make public EV charging simpler by building a unified platform that allows users to discover and charge across various EV charging networks using a single interface.

Through this EV charging alliance, EV users can look forward to a seamless EV charging experience via a single account with improved visibility of chargers. Essentially, the move aims to eliminate the need to download different EV charging apps to discover, activate and pay for charging.

According to the statement, the Alliance will start a joint working group tasked with aligning operational protocols, data sharing frameworks, and backend integrations towards developing a unified platform that enables effortless EV charging through a single interface or account, regardless of the CPO.

The unified platform also aims to bring better visibility and price transparency across networks, while serving as a single point of reference for carmakers and OEMs looking to integrate with Malaysia’s charging ecosystem.

As part of its ambition to simplify EV charging for Malaysians with a consistent and driver-friendly experience, they are also inviting other CPOs to join them as they strive to develop an open, interoperable and commercially viable charging infrastructure for all.

At a time when Malaysia’s EV adoption is picking up, this is a much-needed move as there’s fragmentation when it comes to different EV charging apps and modes of payments for various providers.

Two years ago, a formal EV roaming agreement was signed between Gentari, ChargEV and JomCharge to enable seamless accessibility of various EV charging networks on a single app. However, there were some inconsistencies for visible chargers and some apps may charge additional roaming fees.

At the moment, the most integrated EV charging experience in Malaysia so far is through the Proton e.MAS and Hello Smart apps. Available exclusively to Proton e.MAS and Smart EV owners, these apps provide access to over 2,500 EV charge points from 8 CPOs including Gentari, JomCharge, ChargEV, DC Handal, Shell Recharge, Carput Zap, Charge+ and RExcharge. Although the app provides the widest access to EV chargers in the country, there’s a little mark up for convenience fee on the charging rates.