Finally, the big names in the auto industry are joining the electric vehicle bandwagon. The Tesla Model S, BMW X5 eDrive, BMW Series 3 Plug In, VW Passat GTE Plug in, Audi A3 E-tron, Audi Q7 Plug In, Chevy Volt 2.0, Volvo XC90 T8, Volvo S60 Plug In, Mercedes Benz GLE, E and C class Plug in, Mitsubishi Outlander Plug In, BYD Tang and Rimac Concept One are but some of the electric vehicles either being sold or will be introduced in the coming months.
Mainstream auto manufacturers are now betting big on EVs as climate change mitigation is becoming a priority agenda among developed nations after the Paris Summit where several major countries agreed on a reduction in global temperature by 2 degrees.
American EV manufacturer Tesla, headed by maverick entrepreneur Elon Musk, is blazing the trail, being the only new car manufacturer to be established in the United States in the last 50 years.
Other major automotive companies such as General Motors with its Chevy Volt have dilly dallied in the past. Now, they are finally launching their electric cars to the public for sale and not just for lease as in the past.
It is understandable that big manufacturers will be quite slow on the uptake since they have already invested heavily in the old internal combustion engines technology which has not drastically changed during the last 100 years. It is now common knowledge that EVs are more economical to operate since electricity worldwide is cheaper than petroleum products and EVs are virtually almost maintenance free.
In the Philippines, the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines is pinning its hopes on the modernization of the country’s antiquated public transport system in pushing its EV agenda.
EVAP President Rommel Juan said that with 350,000 old public utility jeepneys and 1.2 million tricycles that need replacement, it makes sense to start with these two vehicles in developing the domestic EV industry. “We are introducing new models of ETrikes and EJeepneys and we have found that no LGU would not want an EV transport system in place in its area. This year, EVAP plans to reach out to LGUs to offer them its EV mass transport solutions for implementation in various areas of the country”. Text and photos courtesy of the Electric Vehicles Association of the Philippines.
