Raul Dancel

The Straits Times

Publication Date : 28-04-2014

The ubiquitous jeepney - the linchpin of the public transport system in the Philippines since the late 1940s - may soon be a thing of the past, replaced by a "Comet".

Made by US-based electric vehicle specialist Pangea Motors, the "Comet" - short for "City Optimised Managed Electric Transport" - is a 22-passenger shuttle that runs on lithium ion batteries. On a full charge, it can cover up to 100km at a top speed of 60kmh. Its battery can be topped up on a 220-volt outlet in less than five hours.

The electric van with its zero-carbon emission, however, is just half the story.

Global Electric Transportation (GET), a global partnership set up by Pangea which is marketing the van, plans to roll out 25,000 Comets in the next five years from an assembly plant it is building south of Manila. It is set to deploy the first 30 Comets - imported from Pangea's factory in Vancouver, Washington state - next month.

Pasang Masda, one of the Philippines' biggest transport groups, has committed to buy 10,000 Comets.

The Comet is not the first electric vehicle to hit Philippine roads. In 2008, the Green Renewable Independent Power Producers introduced the "E-jeepney". But the electric vehicles were more a novelty, for use mostly in resorts, industrial zones and university campuses.

Read more:

'Comets' to lead green charge in Philippines