DOE asks DOF to allow tax-free entry of e-bus

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Energy (DOE) has endorsed to the Department of Finance a request by Newgen Electric Technologies Inc. to allow tax-free entry of an electric bus.

The endorsement letter signed by Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras noted the alignment of Newgen’s plans with the DOE’s own thrust to promote the use of alternative fuel vehicles.

In a recent forum in Cebu, he also expressed his support for Newgen’s electric bus project.

Newgen president Jan Kierulf, in his capacity as director for research and development at Victory Liner Inc., wrote Almendras in June, seeking the DOE’s help in asking the DOF to waive the taxes and duties associated with the importation of an electric bus.

Kierulf said the first bus that Newgen wanted to bring into the country would serve as the “proof of concept” for investors who might want to produce electric buses locally.

Investments in the assembly of such buses here would not only help boost the use of electric vehicles in the country, but also pave the way for possible electric bus exports.

Locally assembled electric buses could be used to ply selected routes in Metro Manila, he said, under a joint program between Newgen partner Victory Liner and the Climate Change Commission.

This would help address the metro’s air pollution problem, as well as help meet the DOE’s goal of reducing the use of fossil fuels in the public transport sector.

“We welcome the DOE’s endorsement of our request to the DOF to waive the taxes and duties on the electric bus that we’ll be bringing into the country. We hope the DOF will see the value of our request, as this could possibly give rise to a local electric bus manufacturing industry that will generate hundreds of new jobs for Filipinos,” Newgen vice president Lee Kierulf said.

“What we really want is to encourage other companies to invest in electric bus manufacturing here. We want to see the Philippines as a key player in the electric bus industry, and not just an importer of already assembled electric buses. We have the capability. We just need government support,” he added.

Right now, taxes and duties on electric and hybrid vehicles account for a significant portion – around 30 percent – of their prices, making such vehicles unattractive for either consumer or public transport use.