Charging ahead, at home

The rapid acceleration in electric vehicle (EV) adoption has been one of the most significant shifts of the last few years.

As an increasing number of EV models hit our roads and highways, the need for EV charging infrastructure has become a key priority.

While public charging stations have sprung up in commercial car parks and urban parking bays across the country, EV owners have also, in growing numbers, taken to installing their own chargers in their homes.

“For many, charging at home is a no-brainer, and public charging points are often a secondary option,” says Lee Wuen Han, founder of Recharge Xolutions (RExharge).

“Home charging offers more reliability, is exclusively for your own use, and costs up to three times less than public charging. With a solar photovoltaic (PV) system installed at home, that price is further reduced.”

As an integrated EV charging infrastructure solutions provider, RExharge has installed over 8,000 home chargers nationwide since its inception around 2021.

The business was formed just as EV adoption was gaining traction, Lee recalls.

At the time, most of the attention revolved around EV charging hardware and the deployment of public charging points, while little was being offered by way of safe, dependable end-to-end home charging solutions for EV owners.

“Many owners still struggled to obtain a safe, reliable and properly coordinated installation. They also needed guidance on electrical capacity, installation design, equipment compatibility and what to do if they experienced problems after commissioning,” he explains.

To address this gap, RExharge honed in on the entire customer journey. Rather than merely selling EV chargers, it sought to deliver a comprehensive solution for owners, providing a full-range of services from consultation and site assessment to installation, commissioning, maintenance and support.

Today, the company is a market leader in residential EV charging, Lee says.

In addition to the home charging segment, which remains its “bread and butter”, the business has now grown to offer solutions in commercial and industrial charging, fleet-charging, and technology-enabled charger management.

On the business-to-consumer front, RExharge serves individual EV owners directly as well as through partnerships with automotive companies and dealer networks. Concurrently, it supports businesses such as commercial buildings, industrial facilities, retail destinations, property developments, and fleet owners.

Depending on the requirements and use cases, its EV chargers range from 7kW basic units designed for overnight or all-day charging, to high-powered 960kW systems typically used for fleets of electric trucks and vans.

Additionally, it partners with charge-point operators as an enabler, helping to identify potential charging locations, engage property owners, and assess commercial and technical viability.

“The residential and business-to-business segments play different strategic roles – the former provides deployment volume, nationwide operating experience, and engagement with the automotive ecosystem while the latter brings larger infrastructure opportunities and potential for long-term income,” Lee notes.

“We are also developing our software and technology service business vertical, allowing us to generate recurring income through preventive maintenance, charger management, operational support, and energy monitoring.”

Currently, RExharge’s operational footprint stretches across the peninsula and East Malaysia, including deployment and service in Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu and Miri in Sarawak, as well as Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Tawau in Sabah.

Having an extensive nationwide reach has been critical for establishing trust among automotive partners seeking to give their customers consistent home-charger installation across various parts of the country, the founder says.

“They choose to engage with us because of our very strict standard operating procedures and meticulous technical checks to ensure the highest levels of quality and safety,” Lee says.

“Another aspect that differentiates us is our ability to shorten lead time for the charger design and installation process for customers, using optimisation technologies such as our in-house app.”

By standardising and digitising its operational processes, the business is able to manage high volumes of projects while maintaining visibility and consistency across its locations, fuelling its aim of reaching over 1,000 charger installations per month by the end of this year.

In Lee’s view, the EV market’s growth is unlikely to slow down anytime soon, which spells expanding opportunities for a company like RExcharge.

“Official registrations for EVs have been doubling almost every year, and our topline has also doubled yearly. I think we will see industry growth accelerate, especially given the ongoing fuel price volatility and geopolitical uncertainty, as consumers and businesses increasingly seek options with more cost predictability and energy resilience,” he says.

“Additionally, businesses are likely to be considering ways to de-risk by electrifying their fleets while prioritising sustainability commitments and decarbonisation.”

RExcharge’s next phase of growth involves three key pillars to be mapped out over the coming five years.

The first is centred on scaling its core EV charging infrastructure business by strengthening operations, deepening ties with automotive and commercial partners, and developing its site-acquisition and project-development capabilities.

Beyond this, it intends to further invest in technology that will make charging infrastructure easier to deploy, monitor, and manage at scale, through improving fault visibility, operational workflows, preventive maintenance and energy optimisation.

Its third frontier is driven by a long-term ambition to build an integrated energy infrastructure platform where EV charging, solar energy, battery storage and technology-enabled intelligent energy management are connected in a centralised operating system.

“As a business, we sit at the intersection of different sectors such as automotive, energy, and environmental, social, and governance, which currently remains very fragmented.

“We plan to create a software system that aggregates and bridges these sectors together,” Lee says.