Mitsubishi reaffirms local HEV production amid EVIS EO signing

MANILA: Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation has reaffirmed its pledge to establish local hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) manufacturing amid the recent signing of the Electric Vehicle Incentive Strategy (EVIS) Executive Order (EO 121). 

In line with this, MMPC stated that it will align with EVIS through Mitsubishi Motors Corporation’s P7 billion investment in local HEV manufacturing. 

For the unaware, the newly signed EVIS is good news for MMPC as it provides several advantages for car companies that have dipped their toes into domestic HEV and battery electric vehicle (BEV) production.

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First, EVIS seeks to boost domestic production through a fixed investment support (FIS) initiative. This means fiscal support from the government, with up to 30 percent and 40 percent of the cost of engineering, tooling, and research for rolling out Philippine-spec HEV and BEV models, respectively. 

This goes together with another EVIS incentive dubbed the Production Volume Incentive (PVI), which shoulders up to 12 percent of the cost to actually build (ex-factory price before shipping, taxes, dealer markups) an EV or a BEV, with a maximum value of P200,000 per vehicle produced.

To be clear, the government isn’t exactly handing out cold hard cash to companies. Instead, they will receive non-transferable Tax Payment Certificates that may be used by the company to settle tax obligations. This includes import duties, income tax, excise tax, and value-added tax. 

Additionally, EVIS is a multi-agency project. It is headed by the Board of Investments (BOI), with cooperation from the Department of Finance (DOF), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Transportation (DOTr), and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

“The EVIS Program shall provide time-bound, targeted, performance-based, and transparent fiscal support to encourage strategic investments in domestic EV manufacturing,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said. 

The minimum investment in local manufacturing to qualify for these EVIS incentives is set at P5 billion, an amount Mitsubishi is expected to exceed, as mentioned above. It also requires a manufacturer to have a production volume of at least 10,000 units, although only two models may be registered under EVIS.

On this note, MMPC has also expressed that it welcomes the EVIS EO. 

“Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation welcomes the issuance of the EVIS EO, which marks an important milestone in advancing vehicle electrification and strengthening the automotive industry in the Philippines,” Chairman of MMPC Noriaki Hirakata said. 

Backed by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation’s P7 billion investment commitment, we are ready to support the government’s vision through the local production of hybrid electric vehicles, further enhancing the country’s manufacturing capabilities and competitiveness,” Hirakata added. 

At the moment, MMPC has yet to say what model it will produce locally, but it was previously stated that its HEV manufacturing facility will be located in Santa Rosa, Laguna. 

To speculate, this could be the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), which is due to launch in the market this coming August. On the one hand, we could also follow in the footsteps of Indonesia and Thailand, where the Xforce HEV is already being produced. 

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