ADB, DOE looking for E-trikes manufacturer

MANILA, Philippines - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Department of Energy (DOE) have started seeking manufacturers for the rollout of 100,000 E-tricycles (E-trikes) until 2016.

The program aims to reduce the transport sector’s reliance on fossil fuels and enhance the standard of living of tricycle drivers, officials said.

“We are doing a pre-qualification of the bidders and we have a set of criteria. One of the criteria is that they should have the technical expertise,” said DOE Undersecretary Loreta G. Ayson.

The ADB and DOE already came up with a final design for the five-seater E-trikes following a consultation with ADB’s team of Japanese experts, said DOE Secretary Jose Rene Almendras.

In March, the DOE selected the three best E-trike designs among 80 entries.

Almendras said the Japanese experts enhanced the safety and functional features of the winning models.

“The E-trike project will put the Philippines at the forefront in terms of efficient, environment-friendly and sustainable transport system,” the DOE said.

Specifically, it targets reducing the transport sector’s gasoline consumption by 561,000 barrels per year, resulting in the reduction of 260,000 metric tons carbon dioxide emissions per year.

All 100,000 units will be rolled out to local government units from 2012 to 2016.

The ADB, for its part, is in talks with five to six lithium battery producers, said Sohail Hasnie, senior energy specialist of the ADB.

“If we look at the battery patents, most of the patents in the lithium battery is held by Japan, South Korea, US and China,” Hasnie said.

The deal will include a five-year battery warranty for the E-trikes, Almendras said.

“We do not want to expose the tricycle driver to a technology risk,” he said.

The E-trikes project will boost the incomes of tricycle drivers through the savings in fuel cost while creating local jobs from the establishment of manufacturing companies, the DOE said.

The DOE expects E-trike operators to spend P90 to P100 per day to charge the E-trikes, lower compared with P380 per day spent for oil-powered tricycles.

“These E-trikes will be manufactured in the Philippines... hopefully this will start a new industry that will create jobs,” Almendras said.

The DOE will allot a portion of a $300-million ADB loan to the E-trikes initiative.

State-owned Land Bank of the Philippines, which is the receiving agent for the payments, will determine the credit-worthiness of the local government units (LGUs) that want to buy E-trikes.

“Not all LGUs will get this. The lending scheme will be based on their credit worthiness,” Almendras said.

Local officials in Boracay in Aklan, Puerto Princesa in Palawan and Cabanatuan in Nueva Ecija earlier said they want to order E-trikes.

Under the E-trike program, the recharging stations will be put up in strategic locations like airports and tourist destinations.

The DOE said the E-trikes will not put an additional burden on the supply of electricity as the vehicles are charged during off-peak hours or in the evenings.

“In the case of off-grid areas, E-trike electricity requirements will be sourced from solar-powered charging stations, thus contributing further to a cleaner environment,” the DOE said.

In April, the government launched 20 E-trikes that are now plying the streets of Metro Manila.