KUCHING: Solarvest Borneo Sdn Bhd (Solarvest Borneo), a subsidiary of the clean energy expert, Solarvest Holdings Berhad (Solarvest), together with Centre for Technology Excellence Sarawak (CENTEXS) and Swinburne University of Technology, Sarawak Campus (Swinburne) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop a revolutionary hydrogen and electric prototype race car.
This collaboration aims to compete in the Shell Eco-marathon Asia in 2024.
Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg witnessed the MoU signing between the three parties during the 27th World Congress on Innovation and Technology (WCIT) and the 6th International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak (IDECS) 2023 event held at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) recently.
The collaboration is a part of Solarvest’s five year strategic roadmap to transform into a regenerative clean energy expert.
Solarvest in a statement said that the project will see students from Swinburne University’s engineering faculty and CENTEXS to be involved in the design and build of the prototype race car, giving Sarawakian students invaluable experience and the opportunity to hone their engineering and competency skills, while playing a role in Malaysia’s growing sustainable mobility sector.
It said the project, coordinated by CENTEXS and Solarvest, is supervised by Joseph Koh, who was the first Malaysian to participate in the eco-marathon event back in 2009.
“As a multi-year veteran of the race event, Koh’s experience and racing pedigree will prove invaluable to the current team in their bid for success at next year’s event.
“This collaboration is an initial effort that can lead to new innovations in partnership with the world-leading vehicle industry, bringing the proven and testbed technologies for commercialisation in the market,” it said.
It also said that the training collaboration between the three parties will help train and equip local Sarawakian students with the know-how to be successful in Malaysia’s fast-growing renewable energy (RE) sector.
“Students who learn from the design and build of the prototype race car will be able to apply their knowledge and experience gained towards realising Sarawak’s RE-hydrogen ambitions in mobility,” it said.
Meanwhile, Solarvest Borneo director Leon Liew said that Solarvest’s green energy solutions will power the development of this cutting-edge racing car, showcasing the potential of hydrogen and electric technologies in motorsports and beyond.
“Being born and raised in Sarawak, as a Sarawakian, I am grateful to be able to contribute to the local community with CENTEXS and Swinburne.
“We believe human capital development is a vital step in building a resilient and progressive society,” he said.
CENTEXS chief executive officer Syeed Mohd Hussien Wan Abdul Rahman also stressed the importance of clean energy in motorsports.
“Thus, the partnership marks a significant step forward in our commitment to driving innovation and nurturing talent in the future automotive industry for Sarawak.
“CENTEXS is offering industry-based competency programmes in green energy which are Certificate in Smart Solar Photovoltaic (PV), Certificate in Green Mobility and Storage, and Certificate in Green Hydrogen programmes in collaboration with Huawei and Solarvest to support the talent development in green energy industry for Sarawak,” he said.
Swinburne vice-chancellor Prof Lau Hieng Ho mentioned the university is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of technology and fostering partnerships that drive positive change.
“As a university of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, we are driven by our vision of bringing people and technology together to build a better world.
“This collaboration exemplifies our commitment to research, innovation, and sustainability, and we are excited to contribute our expertise to this remarkable project,” he said.
