E-waste in Penang: old phones, laptops and appliances

The short version

In Malaysia, e-waste is scheduled waste (code SW110). The government says households should take it to a collection centre registered with the Department of Environment (Jabatan Alam Sekitar, JAS), or to a JAS-licensed recovery facility.
The MyEwaste app from JAS shows registered collection centres on a map, including the nearest one to you.
Penang Green Council lists laptops, TVs, radios, fridges and washing machines as e-waste. It keeps a list of e-waste recyclers and collectors.
Penang island: MBPP's Trash for Cash drive at Taman Serina, Sungai Pinang, collected phones, laptops and monitors in August 2026.
By post: in 2024, Maxis and its partner ERTH offered free postal drop-off of e-waste at Pos Malaysia outlets, and pickup in Penang. Check that it still runs.

Why it matters

The government's MyEwaste page says e-waste contains hazardous substances that can harm health and the environment if dumped, burned or sent to the informal sector. It also contains precious metals and materials that can be recovered.

Source: MyGovernment portal, MyEwaste, read 2026-10-14.

Find a registered collection centre

The MyEwaste mobile app (Android and iOS), from JAS, lets you:

search for the nearest collection centre on a map;
scan an item to find out about it;
read e-waste news.

The page says households are responsible for sending e-waste to registered collection centres or JAS-licensed recovery facilities. It gives a JAS contact on 03-88712118. The page was last updated on 26 September 2025.

Penang Green Council's FAQ (directory last updated 3 July 2024) says the complete list of e-waste recyclers and collectors is on its MAMPAN Directory. In May 2025, the state environment committee chairman told The Star that the directory had identified 105 collection points and recycling centres: 42 on the island and the rest on the mainland. Some are community centres, others are factories and businesses.

Sources: MyEwaste, Penang Green Council FAQ and Asia News Network, 9 May 2025, read 2026-10-14.

Council drives on the island

MBPP's Municipal Services Department runs a Trash for Cash Hub 3R at Taman Serina, Sungai Pinang, with partners Riiicycle and Tanjung Synergy. The Star reported that the 30 August 2026 drive collected six mobile phones, four laptops, a computer CPU and two monitors, as well as recyclables, textiles and used cooking oil.

There is also a recycling centre at Tanjung Bungah Market. In December 2024, MBPP's mayor said that centre had collected 139 pieces of e-waste that year, and that the council had set up 24 recycling centres across Penang Island.

Neither report gives the hub's regular days and hours.

Sources: The Star, 25 September 2026 and The Star, 31 December 2024, read 2026-10-14.

Pickup and post: Maxis and ERTH

As published in June 2024, Maxis's e-waste campaign was run with Electronic Recycling Through Heroes (ERTH), which Maxis describes as an e-waste collection centre authorised by the Department of Environment. Maxis said it offered:

a collection service for homes and businesses in the Klang Valley, Johor Bahru and Penang;
free postal drop-off at over 1,000 Pos Malaysia outlets, for anyone in Peninsular Malaysia.

ERTH's founder said free pickup needed a minimum number of items. The release does not say how many. Check the current terms on Maxis's site before you book.

Source: Maxis newsroom, 11 June 2024, read 2026-10-14.

Batteries and bulbs

Loose batteries, power banks and fluorescent tubes are a different kind of scheduled waste. See Batteries, bulbs and cooking oil.