New legislation and guidelines light the way
The shift to electric vehicles can’t happen soon enough. It’s likely many motorists have already thought of making the shift, but still don’t find many factors favorable. Nonetheless, advocates of electric vehicles are working hard to make these cleaner, more environmentally friendly means of transport more accessible and practical to consumers.
These advocates recently gathered at the 9th Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit (PEVS) which was held last week. Organized by the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP), together with the Manila Electric Company (MERALCO) in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE), the two-day online event focuses on fast-tracking electric vehicle (EV) adoption in the local transport sector. With the theme ‘Accelerating the Switch to Electro-Mobility in the Philippines,’ it aligns with the national government’s goal to attain a low-carbon economy in the middle term.
“I can assert that interest on EV among Filipinos is getting stronger and stronger,” said EVAP President Edmund Araga in his opening remarks. “We need to step up our efforts to achieve our goals for rapid EV deployment and to do this, government and private sectors need to collectively reaffirm their commitment to do so.”
Two-day digital conference
The first day of the online conference centered on dialogues about EV technologies and solutions. Opening Day 1 of the event were keynote messages by leaders from the public and private sectors—including House Committee on Energy Chairman Juan Miguel Macapagal-Arroyo, DOE Secretary Alfonso Cusi, and Senate Committee on Energy Chairman Sherwin T. Gatchalian. An official from the UK government, which will host this year’s COP 26, also participated in the online discussions.
The second day of PEVS focused on the EV value chain development and market opportunities. There were sessions about manufacturing of EVs and batteries, establishment of charging network and infrastructure across the country and feasible business models for EV adoption.
Among the highlights of the 9th PEVS was the symbolic signing of a stakeholder Memorandum of Understanding aimed at speeding up the switch to electro-mobility by the year 2025.
Major developments
The 9th PEVS also touched on updates about several developments for the EV adoption advocacy. These include the Senate and the House of Representatives’ respective versions of the Electric Vehicle and Charging Stations Act, the DOE’s recently released charging infrastructure guidelines and policy, and the Land Transportation Office’s administrative order about the classification, registration, and operations of various types of EV.
The government is also working to attain the goals of its EV Industry Roadmap (2016-2024) as set by the Department of Trade and Industry—Board on Investments (DTI-BOI). PEVS will provide more details of these developments and a platform for the various sectors to share their views on the matters.
The 9th PEVS was organized with major sponsor, Nissan Philippines, and other sponsors: Mitsubishi Motors Philippines, Power Equipment and Supply, Inc. (PESIN), Integrated Micro-Electronics, Inc. (MI), and Delta Electronics International (Singapore) Pte Ltd.