Construction of vehicle assembly plant in Negeri Sembilan starts

As reported earlier, the state of Negeri Sembilan will soon have a vehicle assembly plant to manufacture and assembly of New Energy Vehicles (which include EVs). The plant – NexV Manufacturing Sdn Bhd (NMSB) is a joint venture between Careplus Group Berhad and the GoAuto Group Sdn Bhd.

Construction starts off today with a groundbreaking ceremony in the Chembong Industrial Area of Rembau, the location of the plant. It is expected to commence operations during the first quarter of 2025, initially assembling models from the NETA brand. Besides NETA, the plant will assemble models of other brands under contract. These will be passenger cars, commercial vehicles and even electric motorcycles.

Different brands to be assembled
The plant will have an initial capacity of 30,000 vehicles a year, of which one third will comprise NETA models through the JV between Careplus and Intro Synergy Sdn Bhd (a GoAuto subsidiary). The plant will not only assemble NETA vehicles, but will be open to other NEV brands intending to carry out Completely Knocked Down (CKD) assembly of passenger and commercial EVs or electric motorcycles.

RM600 million investment
The total investment for the plant development is about RM600 million and there will be three phases, with the second and third phases beginning in 2026 and 2028, respectively. During the two phases, production capacity will be built up to 50,000 units a year.

This first phase will create more than 600 skilled and semi-skilled jobs. As operations are scheduled to start in early 2025, recruitment and training of the workforce will commence as early as August 2024.

Specialised in EV manufacturing
Right from the start, NMSB will be specialised in EV manufacturing. It will adopt smart manufacturing technologies with robotics, cloud-based plant management, industrial IoT and other technologies associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Eco-friendly manufacturing processes
The plant will not only make environment-friendly vehicles but its operations will also be eco-friendly. Its operations will produce zero wastewater discharge, zero noise pollution, while solid waste will be processed through recycling centres within the facility. A significant portion of factory’s energy will come from solar panels on the roof of the plant.

“We take pride in the extensive support this project has garnered from both state and federal governments, contributing to its rapid progress in advancing local assembly and localization efforts within the country. We believe that this represents a significant stride towards fostering greater acceptance and awareness of electric vehicles in the future,” said Go Auto Chairman, Dato’ SM Azli SM Nasimuddin Kamal.

“Congratulations to Careplus Group and GoAuto Group for their collaborative efforts in driving the future vision of sustainable mobility. MIDA applauds NMSB for its commitment to innovation, green energy and industry leadership, advancing Malaysia’s status as a major player in the EV industry while placing the nation at centre stage as a pivotal global impetus,” said Datuk Wira Arham Abdul Rahman, CEO of MIDA (Malaysia Investment Development Authority).

“It will augment national EV targets defined by the Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint and National Energy Policy. It also complements the aspirations described in the National Automotive Policy 2020 and the New Industrial Master Plan 2030,” he said.

Careplus Group provides details of auto venture with Go Auto Group