Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. (PSPC) said it is ready to launch electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure in the country if need arises and subject to regulatory frameworks.
Cesar Romero, PSPC president and chief executive officer, said in a briefing last week proper regulation is needed if they are to offer EV charging services.
Last January, PSPC’s parent firm, Royal Dutch Shell acquired Ubitricity, operator of the largest public electric vehicle charging network in the United Kingdom. In 2019, it also took over American firm Greenlots, also a developer of electric vehicle charging and energy management technologies.
So far, the global oil player has deployed over 40,000 electric charge points for homes and businesses in the Netherlands, Germany, France and UK.
“Electricity has a different regulatory body compared to oil. Who is allowed to retail electricity? However, one advantage of being part of the broader Shell company is we have the knowledge from other countries and our new stations are also EV ready,” Romero said.
Romero added other considerations include the capacity of the national grid to handle additional load.
Romero said since most of the Philippines’ power source is from coal power plants, this would defeat the purpose of lowering emissions through the use of non-fuel based vehicles.
Meanwhile, Romero reiterated that despite the closure of its refinery business in the Philippines, PSPC intends to remain listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange.
“We intend to continue being listed. Our intention when we transformed our refinery is to improve our financial performance. There are no thoughts on delisting. We will maintain status quo,” Romero said.
