Setel teases something electrifying is coming, can it solve the biggest pain point of EV charging in Malaysia?

[ UPDATE 25/05/2022 12:40 ] Setel EV charging feature is now live with 5 pilot locations. Some locations are free including a 180kW charger.

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After introducing a new feature that allows you to pay for petrol using an Apple Watch, Setel appears to be introducing a new feature for owners of electric vehicles. The fuel ePayment app has posted a teaser that “Something electrifying is coming” without providing further details.

At the very least, perhaps Setel may include an EV charger locator on their map which allow EV owners to easily navigate to the nearest charging station. At the moment, the Setel app has a filter feature where it can list out the nearest Petronas stations according to Fuel Type, F&B outlets, as well as other facilities such as ATM, Petronas Gas and etc.

There are several Petronas stations that offer ChargeEV charging stations and users are required to tap using their ChargeEV card. It would be interesting to see if Setel can integrate the card authentication into its app and offer a pay-per-use charging model for non-ChargeEV members. Since Setel can be used to pay for petrol and diesel, adding EV to the list would be a logical next step.

Any solution to make EV charging easier is certainly welcomed considering there are more electric vehicles hitting the Malaysian roads thanks to tax exemptions from the government. One of the major pain points is the availability of EV charging infrastructure which is quite messy at the moment. Several car dealerships and showrooms have started charging for the use of their DC fast chargers and some require a manual payment method like a direct bank transfer.

In case you missed it, we tried Setel’s Watch app to purchase petrol and you can check out our experience in our recent Trends video. It is a nifty way to pay for petrol if it isn’t convenient to take out your smartphone.

If you’re thinking of buying an electric vehicle, do check out our EV Buyer’s Guide to find out what options are currently available in Malaysia.

Related reading

• We pump petrol with an Apple Watch and Setel | Trends
• Setel Apple Watch app now available, but I’ll still stick to my phone for petrol payments
• SoyaCincau’s Malaysian EV Buyer’s Guide – May 2022 Edition
• Setel now offers seamless parking with number plate recognition at Suria KLCC. Here’s how to activate it