Study says Filipinos are ready for electric vehicles, but road to EV still a long way to go

45% of Filipinos are willing to buy an electric vehicle as their next car in the next 3 years. This is according to the Nissan-commissioned survey done by Frost & Sullivan titled “The Future of Electrified Vehicles in Southeast Asia” that was shared in a webinar today. It’s a slight dip from their 2018 report where 46% of Filipinos said they’re going to buy an electric vehicle, but it’s still a significant number of people.

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In that group, the study showed that only 23% are basic utility drivers or those who are looking for a car from point A to point B. Most of those who are looking into EV are environmentalists and trendy enthusiasts who are looking for the next best thing as their daily ride. Reason for doing so is aside from the environmental benefits, the advanced safety features of EVs are more appealing to them.

Running out of power and safety of EVs remain their top points of worry, though concern about them has dropped by around 10% compared to their study in 2018. Other factors include maintenance and operating costs, limited public charging infrastructure, and personal charging capability.

Adoption would be a tug of war between consumers, regulators, and the private sector’s willingness to invest. In the study, it is said respondents would be more eager to buy if they get tax incentives, have charging stations in residential buildings, and priority lanes for this class of vehicles. This is on top of the findings that the source of electricity, if it’s renewable or not, would be a significant factor in their purchase decision with 86% of Filipinos agreeing on this matter. This means that the adoption doesn’t solely rely on the government, but the private sector as well since the power grid, toll roads, and most buildings aren’t government owned.

Locally, the shift towards electrified mobility has already started with the unfortunate phase out of traditional jeepneys that was only halted by the pandemic. There’s also a bill filed in the Senate called the Electric Vehicles and Charging Station Act. It suggests tax exemptions for manufacturing and importing EVs, exemption from number coding schemes, as well as requiring private and public buildings and establishments to designate parking slots with charging stations. We’ll have to wait when it will make progress again towards becoming a law. Isao Sekiguchi, Regional Vice President for Nissan ASEAN, shared that the Nissan Leaf will arrive in the Philippines in the coming months. As the first mass-produced electric vehicle, it will be interesting to see how it can contribute to fast tracking the adoption of EV in the country.