PH EV adoption expected to accelerate attainment of green mobility

MANILA: The adoption of electric vehicles (EV) in the Philippines appears to be moving toward an inflection point with regulation, battery, technology, and sustainability goals evidently converging.

In a statement, Meralco EV Product Manager Anthony Agoncillo said, “The EV industry sees 2024 as the tipping point. We expect electric vehicles to reach price parity with conventional models by then.”

The local EV industry’s positive outlook compared to the forecasts of BloombergNEF, which suggests that the total cost of ownership (TCO) of EVs will match that of the vehicles that use internal combustion engines around 2027, is supported by conversations with car companies that have begun to roll out their EV models locally.

Whether it happens in 2024 or years later, Meralco considers the development as good news as the company has been leading the promotion of “green mobility” since 2010. According to Agoncillo, almost half of his 21 years with Meralco has been spent getting EVs— from electric tricycles to electric jeeps and electric shuttles — on the road to transport more Filipinos. Some universities, local government units, industrial parks, and mall operators were among the early adopters of EV.

“The overarching theme here is sustainability,” Agoncillo stated. The early converts significantly contributed in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and helped alleviate climate change. On an overall TCO basis, using electric-powered vehicles can save as much as 70% versus the gas-fueled cars. Aside from the lower cost, another potential driver of the shift to EVs are the ecological benefits of being carbon neutral.

Meralco targets to contract 1,500MW for renewable energy providers in the next five years and build its own 1,500MW of generation capacity from renewable energy sources. Meralco has already been using biodegrable ester oil as insulating fluid for its 8,101 pad-mounted distribution transformers (DTs), while other DTs, including the pole-mounted, will use earth-friendly oil in the future.

In 2020, Meralco launched its Green Mobiity program to reduce GHG emissions by replacing the gas-fueled vehicles in its fleet with electric-powered ones. Meralco is set to roll out 121 EVs this year, leading to 6% fleet electrification. Meralco targets to achieve 25% fleet electrification by 2030.

The continuous support for wider EV adoption in the country is evident as the Senate passed the Electric Vehicles and Charging Stations Bill, while the House of Representatives is rushing the passage of its version of the bill. A reconciled bill will hopefully be presented to the president soon for his signature.

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has also previously issued an administrative order on the classification, registration, and operations of different types of EV, including e-jeeps and e-trikes.

Meanwhile, the passage of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE Act) gave way for the grant of fiscal incentives for companies who would manufacture EVs.

The Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP) is also hosting the 9^th Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit (PEVS) virtually today and tomorrow, September 23 and 24.

All these initiatives seem to be parallel to what is being done in other countries like China, Japan, and Singapore, where the use of EVs is becoming more widespread.

Paris-based International Energy Agency revealed in its “Global EV Outlook 2021” that the global electric car stock hit 10 million in 2020, representing a 43% increase from 2019. This rapid growth indicates increasing demand on EVs. Battery electric vehicles composed two-thirds of new electric cars as it has longer range per charge of as much as 400 kilometers.

“With EVs expected to reach 1,000 kilometers on a single charge in the next few years, which is more than enough for commercial transport application, the advent of green mobility is literally and figuratively just around the corner,” Meralco said in a statement. “It is now time to start the conversation on how EVs can be a sustainable transport option for companies.”

Photos from Meralco

Also read: 9th PH Electric Vehicle Summit begins today