The government plans to strengthen the electric vehicle incentives strategy (EVIS) starting with an updated roadmap that will be issued this month.
Patrick Aquino, director of Energy Utilization Management Bureau (EUMB), said the DOE would release a more relevant Comprehensive Roadmap for the Electric Vehicle Industry (CREVI).
“Since 2023, we’ve gathered feedback from players, and from this, we intend to craft a more responsive roadmap that will hasten the implementation of EVIDA [Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act],” he said in a pre-event briefing Tuesday for the upcoming EV Summit in October.
The roadmap will focus on beefing up the infrastructure required to accelerate the adoption of EVs such the deployment of more charging stations nationwide.
Aquino said while there was a pushback in terms of infrastructure development for at least half a year, “we are coming out with a draft this or in the next quarter to hasten the placement of charging stations.”
“As you know, there are more EV units coming here compared to the number of charging stations. We don’t have the critical mass to support the increasing population of EVs,” he said.
He said industry figures reported by automotive groups do not tally with the registration records of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), which is crucial to determining the accuracy of EV units to a charging station.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) came up with a draft proposal on the proposed incentives to the EVIS that involve trigger production volume for fiscal incentives, and other support mechanisms to drive the industry.
The EVIS is open to at least one proponent with the capacity to locally manufacture 2-wheeled, 3-wheeled and platform vehicles for public transportation. Othel V. Campos
Sales of EVs jumped to 10,602 in 2023, based on figures from Statista, from just 1,072 units sold in 2022. This year, sales of EVs are expected to further rise, according to the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP).
The three-day Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit (PEVS) 2024 is set from Oct. 24 to 26, 2024 at the SMX Convention Center Manila.
