Perusahaan Otomobil Elektrik (Malaysia)

POEM had aspired to mass produce small electric vehicles for primarily business customers in domestic and export markets.

Despite initial struggles and complications, Proton managed to firmly establish itself as a major player in the local market, and its success paved the way for a wave of new Mahathir-endorsed national car companies in the 1990s.

Perusahaan Otomobil Elektrik (Malaysia) was incorporated in November 1996 as a joint-venture primarily between Malaysian state-owned electricity provider Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) (40%) and UK-based Frazer-Nash Research (FNR) (30%).

[4] The remaining 30% equity was divided between Musteq Industries, FIMA chairman Basir Ismail, and Composite Automotive Research (CAR), a company founded by former Proton general manager Nadzmi Salleh.

Under the original joint venture agreement, FNR had offered their electric vehicle technology, while TNB agreed to produce the end product using body components supplied by CAR and Musteq.

[4][3] POEM produced more electric vehicles for use as personnel transporters at various public events such as the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur and the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.

[16] Despite its early gains in electric vehicle technology, Tenaga Nasional did not pursue any subsequent large scale endeavours into the automotive industry.

However, the relationship between Mahathir Mohamad and Kamal Siddiqi held on and Frazer-Nash Research would go on to work with Proton in the late 2000s, leading up to several hybrid-electric prototypes of the Saga, Persona and Exora which participated in the 2011 RAC Future Car Challenge.

[19] By the late 2010s, Frazer-Nash Research had incurred significant debt, and the British court ordered it to wind up along with its parent company Kamkorp.

POEM commenced limited production of the Eleksuria in November 1997 at a temporary facility within Tenaga Nasional's UNITEN campus with a small workforce of 30 to 40 personnel.

[6] The initial batch of Eleksuria produced were not road legal, and was only permitted for use on private property grounds such as at airports and resorts.

[8] POEM supplied at least 324 electric vehicles to Frazer-Nash Australia for sale to the organisers of the 2000 Summer Olympics, half of which were reportedly Solar Baby / Eleksuria models.