YAMAHA Motor Philippines Inc. President Hiroshi Koike said he is grateful for the government's initiatives on zero tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs), but more work still needs to be done in order to fully realize the industry in the Philippines.
In an interview with reporters, Koike said besides tariffs, EV-related infrastructures and other related laws must also be considered and put in place in order to entice more investors.
'Regarding zero tariffs on EVs, we are very thankful, but I don't think it is enough yet,' Koike said.
'Simply speaking, if we were to come up with e-bike that has a similar performance as the current internal combustion engine, the price would be double, and few decreases on percent would not offset those. Moreover, we need to invest in various infrastructures as well,' he added.
His talk on infrastructure stems from the business itself as Yahama is already selling e-bikes, but not in the Philippines because again of lack of infrastructures for EVs starting from production to eventually, recycling.
'We also need to think a lot before bringing these in because we need to think how to have battery stations. As a manufacturer, we need to think about how to collect the battery because when we talk for saving the environment, which is supposed to be the objective of EVs, there is no point if people start throwing out the batteries everywhere, and this is not good for the environment,' Koike explained.
He also mentioned that EV is only one of the options they are considering in terms of reducing carbon dioxide emissions as they are also looking at hydrogen engine and biofuel as well.
'There are different options and I think we should be open-minded and think what is best for the society and customer as well, but we cannot do this alone,' Koike pointed out.
He concluded that there is a region that is already doing its transition and if the Philippines must learn from what it's done and try to not make the same mistakes, he thinks the country can do it in less work and shorter amount of time.