THE Penang government has been praised for drawing investments into the state, which is dubbed the Silicon Valley of the East.
Renesas Semiconductor (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd Engineering director Lim Kien Hin gave credit to the state government for being the hub to attract investors into the state.
“Penang has been faring well in this aspect, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“There is no doubt that the semiconductor industry has been doing pretty well for the past two years, and Renesas is one of them.
“We provide a wide variety of semiconductor solutions, especially in the global automotive industry.
“Seventy-five per cent of our production was automotive production,” he said during a Renesas delegation’s courtesy call on Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow in Komtar today.
During the visit, Renesas Electronics Corporation senior vice-president, and general manager of production & technology unit Shono Eizaburo extended his invitation to Chow to attend Renesas Semiconductor (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd’s 50th anniversary celebration in Setia SPICE Convention Centre tonight.
“It is my first visit here in Penang after the Covid-19 pandemic. I had previously visited the state back in 2019.
“The state has been doing remarkably well in the semiconductor industry,” he said.
Chow said the shortage of manpower remains a challenging issue.
“Collaboration is needed between all the relevant industry players to address this issue,” he said.
He reiterated that the talent issue was one of the challenges that needs to be looked into.
At the same time, the industry players need to upscale themselves to remain competitive in the semiconductor industry, added Chow.
He said the industry players have to reinvent themselves with the latest innovations to keep up the pace among themselves.
“The digitalisation and fourth Industrial Revolution (4.0) are the way forward for us to strive further.
“We will be overtaken by our counterparts from neighbouring places if we are not involved in these aspects,” he said.
Chow also shared with the delegation that the state’s initiative, Penang Future Foundation (PFF), which was launched in 2015, has assisted many youths across the country to pursue their studies.
“We have awarded about 655 scholarships over the last seven years. They were enrolled in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Accountancy and Finance,” he said.
Also present were Renesas Semiconductor (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd president Ota Mitsuru, and Renesas Semiconductor (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd manufacturing director Yeoh Seng Huat.
Story by Edmund Lee
Pix by Alissala Thian