As it remains steadfast in delivering its mandate of national prosperity, Permodalan Nasional Bhd’s (PNB) significant role in corporate Malaysia puts the sovereign wealth fund in a crucial position to effect change, especially regarding innovation and sustainability.

Being one of the largest fund management companies in the country, PNB continues to emphasise sustainability in delivering its value-creation and nation-building agenda, against the background of an ever-changing global investment landscape.

These include its target of becoming a net zero enterprise by 2025, and achieving a net zero portfolio by 2050. It also aims to invest a total RM10 billion in new green and transition assets by 2030. These forward-looking objectives are part of PNB’s 10 ESG commitments outlined in the Sustainability Framework it launched in April 2022 to achieve a sustainable value chain and reduce financed emissions.

The recent PNB Knowledge Forum 2023, which is part of PNB’s knowledge sharing initiatives, gave a glimpse into the sustainability-driven practices and innovative approaches of several of its investee companies — each of which is a market leader in their respective industry.

During his opening speech, PNB chairman Raja Tan Sri Arshad Uda said the forum is a continuation of 2022’s conversation on sustainability into 2023, with this year’s theme being harnessing innovation and technology for sustainable business.

The changing landscape has brought with it new opportunities and risks, he said, adding that organisations that are flexible enough to reinvent their business models have been able to thrive despite uncertainties.

“This forum and its conversations are also timely and in line with the government’s aspirations and initiatives to enhance or elevate the nation’s competitiveness and to address the complexities of the nation’s economic activity.

“The new innovative strategies and approaches in the soon-to-be-released New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) will chart Malaysia’s industrial development and growth trajectory until 2030,” said Raja Arshad. The NIMP 2030 is expected to drive manufacturing industry transformation by advancing economic complexity, digital tech-up and pushing for net zero.

He added that PNB will play its role in nurturing and driving business communities as well as encouraging innovation and continuous improvement among its investee companies and, by extension, corporate Malaysia as a whole.

In this spirit, the PNB Knowledge Forum takes a closer look at innovations and technologies as well as proactive approaches and practices within the PNB group and its investee companies to ensure sustainable business operations and performance, market leadership and organisational excellence.

Four of its investee companies, namely Sime Darby Plantation Bhd, Sime Darby Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) and Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua), showcased their innovations to make their business practices more sustainable, as consumers and institutions place an ever-growing emphasis on the importance of preserving the environment and limiting emissions.

The food gap, or more specifically, the gap between the amount of food needed to feed individuals and the actual availability of food, is one of the key challenges humanity is facing currently, amid rising global population and scarcity of land for agriculture.

Sime Darby Plantation Bhd is playing its part in addressing the issue, according to chief research and development officer Dr Harikrishna Kulaveerisingam, who highlighted the innovative steps taken by the group to enhance its output.

“We have unravelled the oil palm genome, which was done in 2009; it’s the ‘Book of Life’ of oil palm. It was important for us to actually start to read that book and understand what it meant, especially with regards to commercially useful traits,” he said.

Using deep and machine learning technologies, along with DNA fingerprinting, Sime Darby Plantation’s Genome Select initiative aimed to predict the performance of palms from their DNA makeup. By doing so, Harikrishna said the group has been able to produce palms that are 15% higher yielding than average.

The group has planted 4,500ha of Genome Select plants to date and will be initiating complete replants of its plantations next year, with each replanting to be between 12,000ha and 15,000ha.

Although still in development, these Genome Select oil palms are more disease-resistant and more tolerant of droughts and floods too.

Meanwhile, Sime Darby Plantation chief digital officer Aditya Tuli talked about the group’s efforts in mechanising and automating its processes, which include the usage of drones for tasks like spraying.

“When all the foreign workers in Malaysia went back to their home countries to take care of their families [during the pandemic], the number of foreign workers available in Malaysia reduced drastically. This had a huge impact on the total production of palm oil in Malaysia,” he said.

Aditya said this prompted the group to think about how to do more with less labour, which led to the group’s mechanisation strategy, Project Infinity.

Given that the group is a plantation company rather than a technology company, Aditya said Sime Darby Plantation had to build an innovation ecosystem around itself; such an ecosystem did not exist at the time.

“We had to scout for the start-ups, the leading-edge technology companies across the globe that would be like-minded partners for us in this journey,” he said, adding that the group found partners both locally and abroad to come along on its journey towards greater automation.

As its operations begin to transform, the group is also upskilling and retraining its workforce to cater to roles like drone pilots and bot operators, which Aditya said will also transform the perspective of jobs within the industry.

“Today, jobs in this industry are regarded as one of the ‘3D’ jobs — difficult, dirty and dangerous. Tomorrow, this industry will be seen as attractive to work in. Hopefully, our locals will be attracted to work in higher-paying jobs on plantations with more specialised skill sets and training on offer in the future.”

As the automotive industry undergoes a seismic shift amid the push for sustainable mobility, Sime Darby Bhd is ready to tackle challenges head-on with its sights set on becoming a leader in electric vehicles (EVs) in Asia Pacific, strengthening the group’s growth as the leader in the automotive sector.

At the PNB Knowledge Forum 2023, Sime Darby group chief strategy officer Datuk Thomas Leong Yew Hong unveiled the

 “Electrification” strategy of its motor trading arm, Sime Darby Motors, amid expectations of higher adoption of EVs.

One of its key focuses moving forward is none other than China, the world’s largest market for automobiles, driven by rapid economic development and its burgeoning middle class. Leveraging its established network in the country through partnerships with leading EV manufacturers, Sime Darby is poised to capitalise on the sales boom in Hong Kong and China.

Its long list of partners in China includes EV players like BYD, Chery Automobile, Nio and Li Auto as well as brands like BMW and Volvo.

Leong pointed out that Sime Darby Motors China’s BMW sales account for a whopping 5% of all BMW sales in the country. China makes up almost 40% of Sime Darby’s overall revenue, making it the largest contributor to its top line by country. “China is the world’s largest EV market. It is also the bedrock for EV innovation and technology. We have a front-row seat to the action. We get to learn what works and what doesn’t work. We get to see how communities and users adopt the EV revolution.”

As the uptake of EVs increases, the demand for after-sales services will soon follow, he said, pointing out another niche that Sime Darby Motors could play in.

Leong said that many new car companies are adopting the direct-to-end-consumer route, like Tesla, whereby vehicles are purchased directly through the brand’s website. “They do not have physical dealerships; the cars still need to be serviced. If an EV gets into an accident, someone has to go and repair the car. That’s where we’ll come in. We want to be an EV after-sales specialist.”

Sime Darby is also eyeing other opportunities in the ecosystem, such as the electrification of commercial vehicle fleets and the installation of charging stations at depots.

Notably, Sime Darby also launched KINETA, a wholly-owned unit providing one-stop EV charging solutions, in 2022.

In Malaysia, KINETA provides hardware and software services to customers purchasing EVs from Sime Darby Motors or elsewhere.

It also has a significant presence in Hong Kong, with charging stations numbering in the hundreds, second only to Tesla. KINETA’s Hong Kong operations were awarded The Best Strategic Charging Network at the recent TopGear Electric Awards 2023 Hong Kong.

Maybank believes it is more important than ever for financial services to retain their human touch in an increasingly digitised world where technology has permeated every facet of people’s lives.

Without proper care, customers can feel detached from the bank providing the service, given the little to no requirement for face-to-face appointments for most banking services.

Maybank group chief digital officer Kalyani Nair emphasised that it is important to be constantly in tune with customers’ existing needs and anticipate their future requirements.

She showcased the suite of services on the bank’s app Maybank, Anytime, Everyone (MAE), such as Home2u, which uses user data to provide personalised home financing solutions.

Working closely with property developers, Home2u aims to streamline the home financing process by eliminating paperwork, queues and appointments, with customers enjoying near-instant approval for their application.

“The No 1 question that customers would ask when they see a lovely home that they want to buy is: can I afford it? Do I have enough money for the down payment? Can I afford the instalments?

“Our service is to help you make that decision. Maybank has enough information about you to do the maths for you,” said Kalyani.

Through the Home2u option on MAE, she said homebuyers can find out about homes within their affordability range, connect with consultants in real-time and get quick results on their mortgage application — within five minutes of application.

In its bid to encourage and educate the population on the habit of saving and tracking their spending habits, Maybank’s MAE app also has the “Tabung” feature, which sets aside the change from purchases into a fund towards a personal goal of choice. Kalyani said this makes saving less painful, especially for those just beginning to inculcate the habit.

The app also provides services to support goal-based investment, be it whether the customer wants to save up a bit more money for early retirement, send their children overseas for their studies or have a longer-term investment plan.

“Based on your salary and EPF contributions, we can advise you on where you can invest and automatically help you save that money. These are some of the things we are doing for our customers,” she said.

Apart from that, Maybank has also made strides in terms of interoperability, as MAE can now be used to make payments in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand as well as roll out solutions addressing the needs of small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

These include its invoicing feature, quick loan disbursements and its Sama-Sama Lokal platform — a zero-commission marketplace where local businesses can set up an online presence.

Kalyani said the platform was launched during the height of the Covid-19 movement control orders here to assist SMEs in reaching customers in their area.

“Our branches noticed that SMEs were really struggling when Covid happened. Some SMEs, like the uncle selling chicken rice, are not on the popular delivery platforms. If we do not help them, we cannot say we are really ‘humanising financial services’,” said Kalyani.

Perodua gave a little look into its recent innovations and technological achievements, which include the use of virtual reality (VR) in the vehicle development process as well as its focus on achieving carbon neutrality in its operations.

Jehan Adnan, head of Perodua’s research and development department, said the national marque is rising to the challenge of the constantly changing landscape amid new regulations, technological innovations and evolving consumer behaviour.

She showcased how Perodua is adopting current technologies through collaboration with the government to set new methods and standards for the industry. These new methods include the incorporation of VR technology for the design of new models, an ergonomics study division, and a 3D printing facility which Perodua utilises to improve its clay model development process.

This improvement in our new development process includes allowing the design team to “see” what a new prototype looks like before realising it in clay form, which saves both time and investment needed in developing a new model.

Jehan also touched on Perodua’s role in creating a measurement of vehicle emissions using local data which more accurately reflect the driving patterns and conditions in Malaysia. This method is intended to assist regulators and auto players alike on actual data on safety, driving comfort and vehicle performance in the country.

She added that with the assistance and guidance of its technical partner, Daihatsu Motor Co. of Japan, Perodua was able to employ these technologies in an efficient manner, both as an OEM as well as meeting our commitment towards the industry and country.

This includes supporting and meeting the government’s aim on low carbon mobility, and ultimately carbon neutrality by 2040, adding that Perodua is playing its part in automotive industry’s push for sustainability.