The 5-minute EV dream and the Philippine reality

An electric car that goes from nearly empty to road-ready in just five minutes sounds less like charging and more like science fiction.

In China, this is not a fantasy. According to The New York Times, Chinese automakers like BYD have developed battery and charging technology capable of adding about 250 miles (around 400 kilometers) of range in just five minutes. Meanwhile, in the US, drivers are still waiting half an hour or more to charge, and experts say true five-minute charging will not arrive there anytime soon.

You might be asking, “Why does this matter to us when some of us are still figuring out if EVs can handle floods?” The answer is simple. China controls over 70 percent of the global EV market, and the cars reaching Philippine shores are mostly from Chinese brands, BYD, Omoda, Jaecoo, MG, Li Auto and Hongqi. If China is a generation ahead in fast-charging technology, it’s only a matter of time before these features reach us.

And when they do, it could change everything. The number one hesitation for Filipinos considering EVs is convenience. Nobody wants to sit in a parking lot for hours waiting for a full charge. Five-minute charging could wipe out “range anxiety” and give drivers the same confidence they have with gasoline.

China can build megawatt charging stations because the government treats them like crucial infrastructure, on the same level as highways. They tie directly into the power grid to make the rollout fast and efficient.

In the Philippines, rolling out even ordinary charging stations is slow. Connecting them to the grid can take some time. Imagine introducing megawatt chargers here. One flash charge might knock out power to half the neighborhood. Some communities already trip their circuit breakers during the Christmas lights season. It is hard to imagine adding cars sucking down electricity like giant cellphones.

If Chinese EVs with affordable prices and five-minute charging arrive here, they could disrupt not only Western EV brands but also gas-powered vehicles. Imagine charging as fast as gassing up, but at a fraction of the long-term cost. That is not merely a car story. It is an economic story.

But it’s not enough to import the cars. We need the infrastructure first. As The New York Times pointed out, China invested in charging stations long before there was even a market for EVs. They built the network so the cars would follow. In the Philippines, we often seem to do the opposite. Wait for a problem, then scramble for a solution. In the case of flooding, we waited for years.

Even if five-minute charging arrives here, you know how some Filipinos will use it.

Someone will still hog the charger for two hours, “just to be sure.”

And of course, there might be resellers, “Charging slot for rent, P2,999 full charge for five minutes only.”

Five-minute EV charging may feel distant, but it’s a glimpse of where we’re headed. If we want to catch up, we need more than shiny new cars. We need to build an ecosystem that makes them practical.

The Philippines may not be ready for five-minute EV charging today, but that doesn’t mean we’ll always be left behind. The Department of Energy, the Department of Transportation, and private sector partners have already started laying the groundwork for a nationwide charging network.

EV charging stations are appearing in malls, expressways, and key cities, and policies are being drafted to encourage both investors and consumers to make the electric shift.

Progress here often feels slow, but it is progress all the same. If the government stays the course and pushes infrastructure alongside policy, then the future doesn’t have to pass us by.

One day, we may not just watch from the sidelines as other countries plug into a five-minute charging world. We will be part of it. And when that day comes, every Filipino driver will know what it feels like to power up quickly and finally keep pace with the rest of the world.