Energy shift

With traditional jeepneys reducing their daily trips and pooling earnings, I’m noticing more e-jeepneys on the road these days.

Some folks I know have also joined the long queues to buy electric and hybrid electric vehicles, along with the home chargers for some models. One happily told me that he has only a two-week wait for his BYD. Clearly, Pinoy distrust of the Chinese government, as reflected in all surveys, doesn’t carry over to this vehicle brand proudly made in China. BYD, for Build Your Dreams, has become the world’s largest EV manufacturer.

I’ve driven EVs and HEVs, and they’re a delight. Some brands run smoother than others, but overall they provide an enjoyable drive. Toyota rolled out its EVs and hybrids years ago; I test-drove an electric RAV 4 in Toyota City, headquarters of Toyota Motors in Japan in the 1990s, and was blown away by the experience. 

Environmental advocates had been pushing for the entry of more EVs and HEVs in the country. But for reasons that only budget thieves can probably understand, the government imposed stiff taxes and restrictions on the vehicles, making their retail prices here prohibitive.

The government finally saw the light only in 2022, with the enactment of Republic Act 11697, the Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act.

EVIDA was meant partly to encourage owners of traditional jeepneys, which run on diesel, to shift to the modern variants that run on solar, battery electric or hybrid power.

But the modern jeepneys are expensive, and many operators were not keen on pooling their resources to invest in the new vehicles under a cooperative system of mass transport service. Today, with diesel prices in the stratosphere, they might be more receptive to the shift.

Private car owners also waited for reviews of the early EVs, HEVs and battery electric vehicles. Among the concerns were the inadequacy of the electric charging infrastructure and the low or zero resale value of the cars.

But EVIDA plus executive orders and rules offered incentives, among them exemption for eight years from the number-coding traffic scheme in Metro Manila and mandated free charging stations in public places. 

Fully electric vehicles are 100 percent exempted from excise taxes while hybrids are exempted by about 50 percent, bringing down their prices. EVs get a 30 percent discount on the road user’s tax; hybrids get 15 percent, with priority in vehicle registration and renewal. Parts and charging equipment have zero or reduced import duties. EVIDA also mandates dedicated parking slots for EVs in certain public and private building areas.

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I was immensely impressed by my first ride in a modern e-jeepney (with roof-mounted solar panels to charge the batteries), which some mall operators began using as shuttles for customers long before the COVID lockdowns. The modern jeepneys have WiFi, USB chargers, TV and CCTV. Most are air-conditioned, but even the non-airconditioned ones provide a comfortable ride. They move quietly and smoothly, with no polluting exhaust fumes. 

Modern jeepneys are expensive, but the ongoing fuel crisis could make the phaseout of the traditional jeepney inevitable.

Electricity of course also needs juice, but power generation doesn’t have to rely completely on crude oil. No one likes being held hostage over a basic necessity; as I’ve written, blockading the Strait of Hormuz is evil. This crisis is intensifying R&D on ways to wean the world from crude oil dependence.

For example, considering the tons of garbage collected daily nationwide, we should be investing more in waste-to-energy projects. Solid waste, livestock manure and even human waste can be converted into energy for producing electricity.

China has probably the world’s most extensive and advanced waste-to-energy system, using its garbage for power generation. Over a thousand high-temperature incineration and filtration plants across that country burn about 900,000 tons of garbage daily to produce steam and generate power. Each ton of solid waste can generate from 300 to 600 kilowatts per hour of electricity. The residual ash is repurposed into concrete blocks and other construction materials. 

Think of what such a waste-to-energy system can do for our garbage and energy problems.

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I’ve visited a livestock farm in Nueva Ecija that collects pig manure and converts it into gas that’s used for cooking. The farm no longer uses LPG. The farm is relatively small and the biogas conversion technology is rudimentary, but with guidance from government scientists, such systems can be leveled up. I’m sure many farm owners would embrace technology that would cut their energy costs.   

Another bestseller in this energy emergency is solar. Someone I know is installing solar panels in his farm. People are now willing to suspend their doubts about the cost-effectiveness of solar panels and are checking out solar roofing for their homes. What could dissuade them is the mountain of red tape that they could face. Just check out the requirements and you’ll see what I mean.

The government should simplify those requirements, in coordination with the electricity distribution companies. It can also provide incentives to bring down the prices of durable solar panels for office and household use.

Many countries realized decades ago the perils of being heavily dependent on imported crude oil. The net importers of crude are racing to significantly reduce their vulnerability, by shifting to alternative sources of fuel for transportation, industrial production and power generation.

The current crisis is accelerating such efforts. Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, when people are again murdering each other in the Middle East (with Uncle Sam in the fray) and the Strait of Hormuz is again blockaded, the rest of the world can shrug and go on with business as usual.

In the race toward renewable and alternative energy, we can’t afford to be left behind.