By V. Sivaji
Despite his tight schedule due to the state elections around the corner, Penang caretaker government’s Chief Minister YAB Chow Kon Yeow made time to attend the Inauguration of 5G equipment manufacturing by Ericsson at the G Hotel here.
A long list of dignitaries attended the event led by YB Teo Nie Ching, Deputy Minister of Communications and Digital, His Excellency Dr Joachim Bergstrom, Swedish Ambassador to Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Lee Kah Choon, Special Investment Advisor to Chief Minister, Mr Pekka Pentilla, representative EU delegation to Malaysia and Mr David Hägerbro, President of Ericsson Malaysia, Sri
Lanka & Bangladesh.
Other present were Datuk Fauzi Md Isa, Secretary General Ministry of Communications and Digital, Dato’ Loo Lee Lian, Chief Executive Officer of Invest Penang, YB Tuan Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh, Chairman of MDEC and Mr Viswanathan Paramasivam, Flex VP of Operations.
In his address Chow paid tribute to Ericsson as the history of Ericsson’s presence in Malaysia dates back to 1965 when it signed an agreement with Jabatan Telekom Malaysia for the delivery of a crossbar switch.
“Since then, the company has consistently played a vital role in shaping the country’s telecommunications landscape.
“Today, Penang is proud and excited to welcome the presence of this Swedish telecom giant in the state,” shared Chow.
Ericsson has established its inaugural Global 5G Equipment Manufacturing Hub in Southeast Asia, located in Penang.
The Global 5G Equipment Manufacturing Hub will be producing Ericsson’s cutting-edge 5G products to support global and local 5G roll-outs.
“This hub will also be the first hub in Southeast Asia and one of the 11 main manufacturing sites globally.
“Standing on the brink of a technological transformation buoyed by the fourth industrial revolution, the proliferation of 5G, IoT and other emerging technologies have definitely unleashed the potential in both industrial and consumer markets. This megatrend has opened up tremendous opportunities for Penang.
“As the Silicon Valley of the East, Penang is the economic powerhouse of the country due to our robust industrial ecosystem. This enables Penang to constantly serve as a partner of choice for global top-notch companies in both the manufacturing and digital economy landscape,” said Chow.
He also expressed confidence that with Penang’s leading position in advanced manufacturing coupled with a strong engineering talent pool, Ericsson will thrive in Penang.
