KUALA LUMPUR, March 23 — AT&S Malaysia is planning to explore collaborations covering new products and technologies as well as research and development (R&D) facilities, considering Malaysia’s strength in the sector.
Senior Minister and International Trade and Industry (MITI) Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said this is most significant since the set-up of AT&S’s mega facility in Kedah will spur talent development in local leading universities to ensure the readiness of the pool of talent in Malaysia to further support the industry.
“On green tech, AT&S expressed intentions to further expand areas of cooperation in developing green energy solutions,” he said in a Twitter posting.
Mohamed Azmin earlier had a meeting with AT&S’ chief executive officer Andreas Gerstenmayer as he shared the implementation progress on the Austria-headquartered company’s facility in Kedah since its ground-breaking last year.
According to the minister, both parties also discussed ways to increase AT&S’s footprint in Malaysia through expansion of their current investment scope, talent and capacity building and green energy solutions.
“Data will be the key growth driver for the microelectronic industry, and AT&S is well-positioned to continue being the leader in this space with plans to increase global presence for fast supply chain and cost efficiency,” he said.
Mohamed Azmin said that during the meeting, Andreas also shared that AT&S has put forth a target to reach carbon neutrality by 2030.
The company intends to work with the government in increasing green energy sources to reach its own targets, ultimately becoming one of the showcases that would set the path for a greener industry.
“I welcome the proposals as this is in line with the targets set in the 12th Malaysia Plan for net-zero greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions by 2050, earliest.
“Indeed, this meeting is most fruitful and MITI and the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) will continue to ensure the business ecosystem remains dynamic and attractive for strategic investments such as by AT&S,” he added.
