The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday signed a Tripartite Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. (PSPC) and Shell Energy Philippines Inc. (SEPH) to help achieve the target 10-percent penetration rate of electric vehicles (EVs) for road transport by 2040.
Under the MOA, which was signed by Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla, PSPC President and CEO Lorelie Q. Osial, and SEPH President Bernd Krukenberg, a pilot study of electric vehicle charging stations (EVCs) to be supplied by renewable energy (RE), such as solar, will be conducted.
The parties will determine the key components of the pilot project including supply, installation, operation, and maintenance of EVCs, monitoring and verification of energy efficiency, performance, and savings through the utilization of RE, and optimization of the use of cleaner energy.
The outputs of the pilot project will then be used as a reference for the DOE to further develop programs, policies, and regulations for the sustainable and safe adoption and operation of EVCs involving the use of RE.
Meanwhile, the data generated in this pilot project will serve as a benchmark for PSPC and SEPH to develop and roll out the EVC network in its existing and future Shell-branded mobility sites. Thus, the parties expect a high likelihood of more EVCs in the near future.
“These alternative opportunities could also position Shell at the forefront of their quest for sustainable and inclusive growth by adding a more compelling long-term vision for clean technologies and renewable energy investment into their portfolio,” said Lotilla.
He added that this undertaking will reinforce the government’s implementation of the Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act (EVIDA) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) signed and adopted in 2022, with an enabling environment for the adoption of EVs and its support charging station infrastructures and support innovation of clean, sustainable, and energy-efficient technologies.
“I commend PSPC and SEPH for collaborating with the DOE for this laudable undertaking—a sound testament of their resoluteness in maximizing value creation while contributing to global climate change mitigation,” Lotilla said.
As of end of 2021, there were around 9,000 registered EVs, of which 378 are public utility vehicles in the Philippines. Also, 327 charging stations have already been deployed nationwide.
Meanwhile, the national plan for the EV industry through the Comprehensive Roadmap for the Electric Vehicle Industry will be released by the end of the first quarter of this year after a series of nationwide public consultations.