143 - MITI’s new EV policy could wipe out BYD in Malaysia

143 - MITI’s new EV policy could wipe out BYD in Malaysia

From Let's Talk About by SoyaCincau

May 11, 2026 · 50 min

About this episode

Amin and Alex discuss the implications of MITI's new EV policy on Malaysia's electric vehicle market, particularly focusing on BYD and affordable EV options.

Malaysia’s EV industry is facing major uncertainty again. In this episode of Let’s Talk About, Amin and Alex discuss MITI’s latest CBU EV policy changes which could effectively wipe out imported EVs priced below RM300,000. This includes the entire BYD EV lineup and many mainstream EV models Malaysians can actually afford.We also break down the government’s repeated flip-flops on CBU and CKD EV policies, the controversial export requirements imposed on BYD, and why automakers may be hesitate to invest in CKD EV production. With just two months notice, is Malaysia's CKD EV capacity sufficient to meet local demand for affordable EVs which is now driven by the middle east conflict?With EV adoption growing rapidly in Malaysia, is the country risking slowing down the transition just as consumers are embracing EVs? And while Putrajaya is urging Malaysians to be more frugal as monthly fuel subsidies balloon past RM7 billion, are these policies moving in the opposite direction of reducing fuel dependency?Amin and Alex discuss what could be happening behind the scenes and who could be impacted most.

People in this episode

Hosts: Amin, Alex

Topics covered

  • EV policy
  • BYD
  • Malaysia
  • CKD EV production
  • government regulations
  • fuel dependency
  • EV adoption

Keywords

  • EV policy
  • BYD
  • CKD
  • CBU
  • Malaysia
  • electric vehicles
  • government regulations
  • fuel subsidies
  • automakers
  • middle east conflict

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: MITI

Products: BYD

Places: Malaysia, Middle East

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