The title of this piece, if it were for an online article, is what you might consider a clickbait headline. But it’s true: The International Energy Agency, a Paris-headquartered intergovernmental organization, has declared that electric vehicles will account for 18% of all cars sold around the world in 2023—up from just 2.5% in 2019. That’s not fake news.
The growth of EV sales right now is so fast that the org is predicting that by 2030, global demand for oil will go down by 5 million barrels a day. If this still doesn’t convince you to consider owning an EV, maybe this will: According to a Reuters story, an IEA officer estimates that small- and medium-size electric cars will achieve “price parity” with their internal-combustion-engined counterparts by mid-2020s (SUVs and pickups, the officer says, will have that parity in the 2030s).
As you read this, EVs are most popular in China, Europe, and the US. So much so that by 2030, it is expected that 60% of total car sales in these territories will be courtesy of electric vehicles.
If you think that engine-less cars are a long way off in poor countries like ours, may I remind you that just a couple of years ago, the arrival of EVs in our market was unthinkable. Today, not only do we finally have a set of rules and regulations making EVs legal in the Philippines, but the influx of electric cars on our shores is steadily increasing. From cheap ones like the Jetour Ice Cream (P699,000) to expensive ones like the Hongqi E-HS9 (P4.98 million), automakers seemingly have an EV offering for buyers from all classes.
And it’s not just the Chinese that are peddling EVs; even traditional, mainstream brands now have them. Nissan has the Leaf, while luxury brands like BMW (iX3 and i7) and Lexus (RZ450e) are taking advantage of wealthy Filipinos’ desire to be early adopters, eye-watering prices notwithstanding.
They say that for developing countries like ours, the implementation of electrified vehicles will generally commence among motorcycles and tricycles. Well, go out and observe the traffic within Metro Manila. I guarantee you that this is exactly what’s happening on our roads now. It’s slow, but it’s happening.
Among our ASEAN neighbors, EVs have started to tempt motorists. EV sales in Thailand have risen to 3%. In Indonesia, the figure is 1.5%. These numbers are not a joke. It would be interesting to find out the statistics in our market. Sure, the number may be laughable for now, but wait for the aforementioned “price parity” to become a reality and then let’s talk.
No, I’m not promoting EVs. I’m just a journalist that’s reporting the news. And right now, the news is that everyone is going electric. Last year, over 10 million EVs were sold around the world. This year, IEA is saying that 14 million EVs will leave showroom floors. To be honest, no one saw this coming. Okay, we saw this coming—but not this fast.
If you’ve reached this far reading this article, maybe you’re now checking when you need to replace your ICE car. Hopefully, the answer will be in your favor.
FILL YOUR TANK: “The works of the Lord are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them.” (Psalms 111:2)