Over the weekend, Proton opened its research and development centre in China; more specifically, within the Geely Automobile Research Institute (GRI) at Hangzhou Bay. The centre is meant to strengthen Proton’s collaborative efforts with Geely, and it will also be involved in the development of Proton’s EV and homegrown models.

The Proton homegrown models, as we have previously reported, should include the Saga, Persona, and Iriz. As expected, Proton will leverage on its joint resources with Geely for the upgrade efforts to assist the “the work being led by Proton R&D engineers in Malaysia,” as the national carmaker puts it.

Though Proton mentioned that its EV model will also be developed at the R&D centre in China, no specific details on the electric vehicle have been revealed. That being said, Geely is expected to introduce an electric SUV dubbed Galaxy E5 in the near future, and it’s possible the electric SUV could be used as a basis for Proton’s own EV model.

With Proton’s first EV model set to be introduced sometime next year in 2025, we won’t have to wait that long to see the efforts of Proton’s R&D centre in China to materialise. Hopefully, the upgraded Proton homegrown models will follow suit not long after that.