An international think tank and research organization is airing its support to the latest development supporting green initiatives in Congress, as a bill campaigning for the inclusion of e-motorcycles in the list of Electric Vehicles benefitting from tax breaks has been filed.

In a statement, Stratbase ADR Institute president Prof. Dindo Manhit said that they support the House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means chairman and Albay Representative Joey Salceda’s House Bill 9573, which seeks to revise Executive Order 12 series of 2022 to also let two-wheeled EVs benefit from tax breaks.

Under EO12, only kick scooters, self-balancing cycles, bicycles, and pocket motorcycles with auxiliary motors not exceeding 250w and with a maximum speed of 25 km/hour have 0 percent import duties. On the other hand, electric motorcycles are still subject to a 30 percent tariff rate.

"Two-wheeled electric vehicles are most affordable, being only 3 percent the price of an electric car. Given this, more and more Filipinos, given the worsening traffic situation and the soaring prices of fuel, could now consider buying their own two-wheeled electric vehicles that are environmentally sustainable, having zero emissions," said Manhit.

"The present situation looks patently discriminatory and anti-poor to limit the incentives for electric vehicles to those who could afford to buy the four-wheel variety. This limited view also does nothing to stop – and in fact worsens – the traffic congestion in the city," he added.

Manhit also said that giving e-motorcycles the same tax breaks as other types of EVs will give way for the faster adoption of 'green traffic' traffic and help Filipinos combat rising fuel costs. According to Manhit, 60% of all EVs in the country are two-wheeled and have not been benefiting from tax breaks under EO12.

National Economic and Development Authority chief Arsenio Balisacan said that motorcycles' possible inclusion in the tax break will take center stage in the deliberations starting February 2024, one year since EO12 took effect.

The enactment of the Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act is one of the government’s ways to help with the decarbonization of the Philippines by creating an industry for EV adoption in the country. This is complemented by EO12, which paved a six-fold increase in sales of EVs in the first quarter of 2023.

To recall, the Statista Research Department said that the Philippines emitted 31.54 million tons of carbon dioxide in 2021 from the transportation sector, prompting the government to create ways to comply with the Paris Agreement and cut down on emissions.

Motorcycles hold the majority of the number of motorists in the country, recording more than 7.81 million registered motorcycles in 2022, based on a study by Statista.

E-motorcycles' inclusion in the tax breaks would not only help ease traffic, be more economical, and reduce the reliance on fossil fuel, but will also help Filipinos choose "to do the environmentally right thing while addressing their transportation and mobility needs," Manhit said.

Meantime, the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines estimates that registered EVs in the Philippines can reach 6.6 million by 2030.