Ninety percent of vehicle emissions across the country come from Metro Manila, an official of the Department of Trade and Industry bared.
During the Toyota Hybrid Electric Technology Conference at the Grand Hyatt Manila in Taguig City on Wednesday, Trade Undersecretary Rafaelita Aldaba said that 69 percent of air pollution in the Philippines comes from vehicles – 90 percent of which are emitted by those that ply streets of Metro Manila every day.
In order to mitigate the worsening state of air pollution, Aldaba said that the government has sped up its implementation of policies to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the Philippines.
Since December 2018, a total of 4,362 EVs have been registered here. Eighty-three percent of these vehicles that are currently in public transportation are e-trikes.
Aldaba said that the government plans to roll out 10,000 units of electric jeepneys and put up 200 charging stations by 2022 in a bid to improve air quality in the country. To date, there are only 19 stations across the country.
Meanwhile, Aldaba said that there are also House and Senate bills that are proposing duty and VAT exemption for raw materials, parts and capital equipment that will be used in manufacturing EVs as well as privileges such as priority in registration and issuance of plate numbers, exemptions from the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program, free parking, priority in PUV franchise application, along with provisions of space for charging stations.
“We are optimistic that the EV industry is poised for growth,” Aldaba said.
She added that the manufacture of EV is among the top priorities of the country’s inclusive innovation industry strategy of “i3s.”
Citing one of the government’s existing programs on EVs, Aldaba said that the Department of Energy has deployed 100,000 e-trikes nationwide to replace traditional gasoline-fed tricycles that contribute harmful greenhouse gases that threaten public health.
However, although there is no current clear policy on EVs unlike in China, Thailand, and India, Aldaba said that the government has released an executive order providing zero tariffs for parts and components for the assembly of hybrid, electric, flexible fuel, and CNG-powered motor vehicles.
“The government’s Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy program is jumpstarting the development of parts and components with the goal of becoming a regional hub in the very near future,” Aldaba said.
Meanwhile, she cited a survey from Frost & Sullivan which reveals that 46 percent of Filipinos are open to buying an EV because of “better safety standards, charging flexibility, and convenience.”
According to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group, the global average temperature continues to rise. In order to curtail the rise of atmosphere temperature, greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 should be reduced by 40 to 70 percent compared to 2010 levels.
Toyota has promoted a number of initiatives to solve the prevailing state of environmental issues across the globe.
