The Department of Energy (DOE) has canceled the government’s $300 million loan from the Asian Development Bank and $100 million loan from the Clean Technology fund for the supposed rollout of almost 100,000 electric tricycles (e-trikes).
In a report by The Manila Standard, DOE secretary said that the loan for the rollout of 3000 e-trike units – whose manufacturing was awarded to a Japanese company – will push through.
“I canceled the loan that is something like 100,000 e-trikes. The 3,000 has been awarded, being produced, so the remaining 97,000 [units] will be set aside,” Cusi said.
The loans were supposed to finance the $500 million project in introducing energy – efficient e – vehicles that target to replace 100,000 gasoline – powered tricycle units. The remaining $100,000 was supposed to be shouldered by the government.
The energy secretary said that they have informed ADB on the loan cancellation.
“We have informed them [of the cancellation] in writing. We have not received a response,” Cusi said.
The project financed by the ADB and Clean Technology fund was supposed to be implemented for five years.
Earlier, the energy department canceled the rollout of the e-trike project due to the lack of interested buyers and expensive manufacturing costs.
“The DOE already decided that we will discontinue the e-trike project,” Cusi said.
Read: Department of Energy cancels e-trike project
Cusi added that the e-trike project from the previous administration was too costly.
“The problem is affordability of the operators. If there will be takers, we will continue to promote that…How do we make it affordable?” he said.
The 100,000 e-trike project was aimed to replace the number of traditional tricycles to reduce the transport sector’s annual petroleum consumption by 2.8 percent (equaling to 89.2 million liters) a year and to achieve 79% carbon dioxide footprint avoidance.
The last few years of the Pnoy administration have created a lot of deep-seated hostility. People take political decisions very personally, and today there is a constant, ongoing attack, with one side or the other being maligned. I hope Mr. Cusi have a technical and economic justification for cancelling the project. I am sure if he wants to reduce the cost of the unit the government can do local manufacturing arrangement with the same vendor and the same financer. I have not seen the life cycle cost for e-trike compared to our present gasoline powered tricycle. I have a feeling that e-trike is far better based on a life cycle cost assuming a combination of e-trike and PV solar charging system versus tricycle using gasoline. I hope the decision made by Mr. Cusi is not a repeat scenario of Pnoy canceling projects initiated by GMA!
Unfortunately, the love affair with e-trikes is (as in many love affairs) missing data, such as:
… According to multiple studies now, the manufacture of electric vehicles creates much more pollution than the manufacture of combustion vehicles.
… According to the US EPA, the mining of lithium (for batteries) is the most environmentally hazardous and most dangerous metals to mine for humans.
… As this website is reporting on the sidebar today, the Philippines may become 80% dependant upon coal power, making electricity a major source of pollution as it currently is in both the USA and China.
Making existing trikes (and jeepneys) much more efficient is a ‘greener’ solution than e-trikes (or e-jeeps) currently.