Shark Bay Technology and Petronas have established a strategic joint venture to promote the implementation of new energy motorcycles and energy refueling services.
Text by | Ou Xue
Edited by | Yuan Silai
Yingke has learned that Blueshark Ecosystem Sdn. Bhd. (hereinafter referred to as "BESB"), a Malaysian subsidiary of Shark Bay Technology, recently officially signed an investment agreement with PETRONAS Dagangan Berhad (hereinafter referred to as "Petronas"), a major Southeast Asian oil company, in Kuala Lumpur. They also announced the establishment of a strategic joint venture - Blueshark Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. (hereinafter referred to as "BMSB") to jointly promote the popularization of new energy motorcycles and energy supply solutions in Malaysia.
(Scene of signing the investment agreement. Image source: Shark Bay Technology)
Regarding the strategic joint venture, Petronas holds 49% of the shares in BMSB, while BESB, the Malaysian subsidiary of Shark Bay Technology, holds 51%. Liu Hulin, the founder and CEO of Shark Bay Technology, told Yingke that the business focus of the joint venture is to build a battery bank and a battery swapping network for new energy motorcycles in Malaysia, and the funds will also be concentrated in this field.
Founded in 2018, Shark Bay Technology, as a technology provider of the "vehicle-battery-cabinet integrated solution", provides BMSB with hardware products including whole vehicles, batteries, and battery swapping cabinets, as well as software SaaS solutions including vehicle management systems and battery swapping operation systems.
Next, BMSB will serve as the exclusive distributor of Blueshark brand new energy motorcycles (including the SoloEra model) in Malaysia. At the same time, it will deploy and operate an intelligent battery swapping network at Petronas gas stations to provide fast battery swapping services for riders, enterprises, and fleet operators. Currently, the battery swapping business has been put into operation in the Klang Valley, Penang, and Johor, and it will cover the whole of Malaysia in phases in the future.
In addition, BMSB has signed a local production agreement with EP Manufacturing Berhad (hereinafter referred to as "EPMB"), a large listed manufacturing group in Malaysia. In the future, EPMB will play a key role in local production, assembly, and logistics operations.
Since the second half of 2021, factors such as the global energy transformation, the diversification of travel modes driven by the pandemic, and the trend of brand expansion overseas have prompted the development of short - distance electric travel, and intelligent electric motorcycles are a typical example.
Liu Hulin believes that new energy motorcycles are facing significant opportunities in the Southeast Asian market. On the one hand, the motorcycle market in Southeast Asia is huge. According to statistics, as the world's largest two - wheeler market, the motorcycle ownership in Southeast Asia exceeds 250 million, with an annual sales volume of 12.67 million (data from 2024), accounting for 30% of the global total. On the other hand, due to rising oil prices and government subsidy policies, the replacement of traditional motorcycles with new energy motorcycles is becoming a trend.
However, Liu Hulin said bluntly that the biggest challenge in the current industry is to achieve cost - effectiveness. New energy motorcycles are more expensive than traditional fuel vehicles because of the battery packs, while consumers expect lower prices. Moreover, the local subsidy in Southeast Asia is limited, and it is difficult to follow the subsidy model of new energy vehicles in China.
In response, Liu Hulin believes that the vehicle and energy can be considered separately. Vehicles without battery packs can not only enjoy subsidies but also be more cost - effective. In the usage stage, the cost - effectiveness advantage of oil prices and electricity prices can be further highlighted through the subscription service of the battery bank.
"The cooperation between Shark Bay Technology and Petronas this time is an important milestone," Liu Hulin said. "The construction of the battery bank requires strong financial support and social credibility. Petronas not only has these advantages but also has gas stations, which are natural battery swapping locations and fit users' habits. This will provide strong support for the overall battery bank construction of new energy motorcycles in Southeast Asia and promote the transformation and development of the industry."
Azrul Osman Rani, the Managing Director and CEO of Petronas, also said: "This cooperation is a strategic move for the company to expand its traditional fuel business and move towards cleaner and smarter travel solutions. With the support of Shark Bay Technology as a partner and our brand, network, and operational advantages, we are capable of building an ecosystem that creates value for the future."