The Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP) said the Covid-19 pandemic has adversely impacted the local EV industry with the number of registered EVs in the country dropping by 35% to 1,015 units in 2020 from 1,570 units in 2019.
The Philippines now has a total of 12,965 registered EVs from 2010 to 2020 comprising of e-trikes, e-motorcycles, e-jeepneys, e-cars, and others, according to EVAP president Edmund Araga during the opening of the group’s 9th Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit (PEVS).
The annual event, the second held virtually, aims to accelerate EV adoption in the Philippines. It is being held from Sept. 23 to 24.
Araga said EVAP, which now counts EV charging system suppliers and network providers, is pushing for the passage of Senate Bill 1382 or the Electric Vehicles and Charging Stations Act after the House of Representatives approved on second reading its version of the same bill.
“We are all looking forward to its eventual passing, the bicameral deliberations, and finally, the signing into law within the term of the current Congress,” Araga said.
Araga said the Department of Energy has also released in July the charging infrastructure guidelines and policy for e-vehicles. The circular, he said, provides a pathway for fiscal incentives to motivate businesses to put up and adopt EV charging stations.
He noted that the Land Transportation Office also recently issued an administrative order that consolidates the guidelines on the classification, registration, and operations of types of EVs.
This, he said, will pave the way for further guidance for consumers’ purchase decisions and for local manufacturers to plan out their strategies.
Araga said the World Bank is currently supporting an EV Road Mapping program for the public transport sector in the country, in cooperation with the DOE.
“In addition, the DOE just bided out a more comprehensive EV road mapping project. These will keep the industry busy in the months to come as we contribute further to these efforts. Never to missed out is the Department of Trade and Industry, which is now heavily working on the EV incentive strategy,” he said.
Among the highlights of the 9th PEVS is the symbolic signing of a stakeholder Memorandum of Understanding aimed at speeding up the switch to electro-mobility by the year 2025.
