Electrocutions, Power Grids, EV DC Fast Chargers, and the Golden Rule: 40 Years of Power with Peter Tan

What links High Voltage Power, Oil and Gas in Sarawak, Middle East, Europe and Asia, Hospitals and the current EV Fast Chargers popping up across Sarawak?

The man behind it all: Mr. Peter Tan.

With a four-decade electrical and related engineering career, Peter has overseen massive industrial substations, audited multi-billion-dollar refineries, and certified power networks built to withstand the harshest environments on Earth. Today, as a Senior Consultant guiding Sarawak’s EV charging infrastructure, he brings world-class industrial standards straight to Sarawak’s green energy transition roadmap.

We sat down with Peter to uncover what 40 years at the electrical frontier teaches you about green energy, high-stakes safety, and the invisible traps hiding in modern technology.

1. Sarawak's Hidden Superpower in the Green Energy Race

When nations transition to electric vehicles, the biggest hurdle isn't the Electric Vehicles themselves – it’s whether the existing electrical grid can handle the additional demand.

According to Peter, Sarawak holds a massive home-ground advantage: Roughly 70% of the state’s power is already generated from renewables like hydro and solar.

Because Sarawak's grid infrastructure is robust, rolling out high-power DC fast chargers doesn't require tearing up the roads, building new electrical infrastructures. Instead, it requires systematic and organised upgrades to existing substations – for example, upgrading the transformer at the Miri’s 101 Commercial Centre to comfortably feed a combined 240 kW of fast-charging station.

To handle Borneo’s relentless humidity and heavy rain, every charger undergoes strict "tropicalization" with site selection backed by historical meteorological data to keep high-voltage assets far above flood lines and operate reliably in a high humidity environment.

2. The 99% Rule: Why Millions in Equipment Fails

You can buy the most expensive, state-of-the-art charger in the world, but it takes only a few millimetres of human error to destroy it.

Peter reveals that 99% of field failures aren't caused by faulty machines, they come down to human errors such as installation shortcuts.

"The equipment itself could be designed brilliantly however the people who built these can omit quality standards" Peter explains. "For example, when an installer pulls a cable into a main switchboard without a proper sealing gland, they leave a gap, and this gap invites a rat or a snake inside. One creature stepping across two conductors causes a massive short circuit, damaging the equipment at best or causing a loss of human life at worst. Equipment quality is only as good as the hands that made and installed it."

Whether in an oil and gas field or a parking lot, diligence, good workmanship and quality control go a long way to provide reliable service to the end users and reduce breakdown costs for the owners. Continuous training, skills improvement and regular refreshers yield high standards and customers satisfaction.

3. "Never Assume" — A Life Saved by a Golden Rule

Early in his career, Peter survived an accidental electrocution—a terrifying moment that permanently reshaped his engineering mindset. Today, his advice to young engineers and technicians working with any equipment or systems including modern high-current DC chargers is crisp and non-negotiable:

“NEVER ASSUME!”

"You never assume a wire is dead just because you flipped a switch. You don't assume a low-voltage battery is harmless when high currents can cause severe burns. You test it yourself every single time. Standards are merely your minimum baseline—you can always do better, but you can never afford to do worse."

Powering the Next Generation: Leadership Beyond the Rulebook

As energy transitions rapidly toward smart grids, green mobility, and software-driven infrastructure, the gap between academic engineering theory and real-world execution has never been wider. For Mr. Peter Tan, bridging this gap isn't just a professional task—it is a personal mission.

Having built his foundational skills in traditional power generation before evolving into high-tech EV charging networks, Peter embodies the ultimate blueprint for modern engineers: endless adaptability backed by unyielding fundamentals.

1. Why Knowledge Must Precede Action

Many young engineers enter the field eager to solve complex technical problems, but Peter’s philosophy forces a critical shift in perspective: you must understand why a system is designed a certain way before you touch it.

"It’s easy to copy what someone else is doing—to just watch and repeat like 'monkey see, monkey do,'" Peter emphasizes. "But true engineering competence means understanding the underlying mechanics, the hidden hazards, and the exact reason why a specific technical standard exists. When you know the 'why,' you don't just complete a job—you protect lives."

2. Upskilling for the EV Era: The BTEC Standard

In a world where electric vehicles function like high-voltage computers on wheels, traditional electrical training is no longer enough. Peter actively pushes local workforce — specifically potential EV maintenance technicians and young engineers to pursue specialized, accredited certifications such as BTEC Level 3 which bridge electrical engineering, advanced electronics, and IT and software savviness. These technologies are vital for both electric vehicles and modern charging equipment, where some ultra-fast chargers are now rated at over 1,000 kW (1 MW) of electrical power.

To Peter, true authority is earned through continuous learning. Even with 40 years under his belt, he openly acknowledges that new technologies require formal retraining. By holding himself to the same rigorous learning standards he asks of junior technicians, he sets an inspiring example of humility and lifelong mastery.

3. "Lead by Example" Mentorship

For the incoming generation of engineers, Peter stands as a role model not because of his impressive resume, but because of his hands-on, lead-by-example style.

• He Normalizes Vigilance: Rather than leading from a comfortable office, Peter walks the field, conducting pre-work "toolbox talks" and reminding teams to look around for subtle hazards before starting. • He Builds a "Buddy System" Culture: He teaches young engineers that safety isn't purely the responsibility of the HSE department but an individual’s responsibility and accountability as well as a collectively duty – where if one observes a potential hazard, speaking up is not only a good practice but it can save the lives of your colleagues and buddies and vice versa, a colleague speaking up could save your life too. He advocates for this open communication as a standard practice across all levels of staff.

• He Turns Mistakes into Masterclasses: Having survived his own hard-won lessons early in his career, he uses real-life field experiences to instil a lasting respect for electricity without dampening a young engineer's ambition.