The Cavite government is opening up its province to investments that would strengthen its electric vehicle or EV market as it moves toward a more sustainable future.

To complement this effort, SM Supermalls, the chain of shopping malls owned by the Sy family and a long-time partner of the Cavite government, launched an EV charging station at SM City Trece Martires,  Cavite, on 2 March.

“Cavite and SM have always been collaborating. With their establishment of SMs here (in our province), they showed their confidence in our local economy,” Governor Juanito Victor Remulla said at the launching ceremony.

“In fact, SM has become profitable here, and now we are working together toward a more sustainable future. Remember, climate change is real,” Remulla added.

The charging station — which will be open for free to electric vehicle owners — can fire off up to 7.4 kilowatts. It can support vehicle brands like Audi, BMW, Fiat, Ford, GMC, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volkswagen, and Hyundai, among others.

Open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, the free EV charging station supports SM Supermalls’ Zero Emissions agenda — helping decrease the carbon footprint while addressing air pollution concerns nationwide.

From an initial rollout of 15 EV charging stations in Metro Manila last year, SM Supermalls is eyeing to launch more stations this year.

SM Supermalls is the first mall chain to establish in-mall EV charging sites. To date, it holds the country’s biggest chain of e-vehicle charging stations nationwide.

In January, the Department of Energy and two local units of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell committed to launch a pilot study on the viability of establishing EV charging stations supplied by renewable energy like solar.

The results of the study will also be used by the DoE as a reference for the development of programs, policies, and regulations for the sustainable and safe adoption and operation of EVCs using renewable energy.

The data generated in this pilot project will serve as a benchmark for Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation and Shell Energy Philippines Inc. 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 soon.

As of end-2021, there are about 9,000 registered EVs, of which 378 are public utility vehicles, while 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.

According to the DoE, the tie-up will complement the targets of the Philippine Energy Plan 2020-2040 to have a 10-percent penetration rate of EVs for road transport by 2040.