Philippine Science Department Expands Academic Partnerships to Push EV Adoption

Support CleanTechnica’s work through a Substack subscription, on Patreon, or on Stripe. Help us produce all of the high-quality, original content we publish week after week despite the challenges of content-scraping AI, antisocial media, inflation, and other hurdles.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is mounting a coordinated push to scale up homegrown electric vehicle technologies as volatile global fuel prices continue to pressure the local transport sector. Driven by its central research arm, the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development, the government is repositioning a suite of locally engineered e-mobility systems from university laboratories into active street and waterway operations.

DOST Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. stated that long-term state investments in domestic electric transport research are reaching a critical maturation point. With fuel prices remaining highly unpredictable, Solidum noted that these developed technologies present an immediate avenue for domestic cost reduction while cutting emissions within highly congested urban corridors.

Among the cornerstone initiatives is the M/B Dalaray, the first electric passenger ferry designed and manufactured entirely within the country. Developed through a joint initiative with the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD), the aluminum catamaran is engineered specifically to navigate the difficult, debris-heavy, and highly brackish waters of the Pasig River.

The vessel relies on an integrated 160-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery system coupled with dual 50-kilowatt electric propulsion motors, sustaining continuous two-to-three-hour passenger service windows across a 45-kilometer operational radius on a single charge. To protect the powertrain from the river’s high humidity and seasonal water hyacinth blooms, the propulsion electronics are completely sealed, while secondary cabin systems draw power from an independent rooftop solar array. The vessel currently services the vital transit route between the Guadalupe and Escolta stations, supported by permanent high-capacity fast-charging stations integrated directly into the river terminals.

On land, the agency is addressing the ubiquitous three-wheeled transport sector through two distinct tracks. The standard E-Trike platform has completed its preliminary pilot deployment phases in regional hubs, including Cauayan, Tuguegarao, Batanes, and Iloilo, proving the viability of localized public fleets.

Concurrently, the C-Trike, or Converted Electric Tricycle, is moving rapidly toward commercialization via the ElectroMobility Research and Development Center at Cagayan State University. Backed by a 79.4 million peso allocation under the national Smart and Sustainable Communities Program, the C-Trike utilizes a standardized modular conversion kit capable of delivering an 80-kilometer range on a single charge.

The technical focus of the C-Trike project rests on its economic parameters. Field data indicates an operational cost of 0.88 pesos per kilometer, a sharp reduction from the 2.30 pesos per kilometer average required to run a conventional four-stroke gasoline tricycle. The university has secured technology licensing agreements with domestic industrial groups, including ACT Machineries and Metal Craft Corporation as well as Suki Trading Corporation, to handle mass production of the conversion drivetrains as local government units begin drafting regulatory frameworks for fleet transitions.

For larger public utilities, the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines has partnered with state researchers to deploy a commercial-grade 23-seater electric jeepney tailored to meet the strict structural requirements of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program.

On the rails, the agency’s Metals Industry Research and Development Center is continuing track validations of its hybrid electric train in coordination with the Philippine National Railways. The 20-meter-per-coach system uses a dual-energy architecture combining diesel generators with a 260-battery bank configured to capture and store kinetic energy during braking cycles.

The critical bottleneck of charging infrastructure is being met by the localized rollout of the CharM system, an acronym for Charging in Minutes. Engineered by the UPD and commercialized via university spinoff CHRG Electric Vehicle Inc., the high-power fast-charging infrastructure cuts typical battery replenishment cycles from six hours down to approximately 30 minutes. The network is expanding outside the initial Metro Manila nodes, with the latest solar-powered CharM infrastructure installations deploying to island provinces and remote municipalities, including upcoming municipal infrastructure launches in Romblon scheduled for late July.

DOST-PCIEERD Deputy Executive Director Niñaliza Escorial emphasized that the primary challenge is no longer technological validation, but industrial scaling. Escorial noted that these transport solutions have moved past conceptual phases and are fully operational on the ground. As the country faces sustained energy market volatility, the agency is intensifying its calls for transport cooperatives, municipal governments, and private logistics entities to adopt these homegrown platforms to meet the national target of shifting 10 percent of public transport fleets to electric options by 2040.