The Philippines and Cambodia are seeing acceleration of EV market developments, while Vietnam has support from a foreign group to build solar energy capacity.
Philippines passes law to promote EV adoption
According to CNN Philippines, a new EV law passed at the end of April by the Filipino congress is expected to urge government bodies and corporates to electrify at least 5% of their vehicle fleets, the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP) was cited as saying. The Republic Act (RA) 11697, or the Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act, also stressed the importance to build more EV infrastructures.
E-commerce firm Lazada to expand to Europe
According to the Edge Market and Tech in Asia, China's Alibaba has injected US$378 million into its Southeast Asia-centered e-commerce arm Lazada for expansion into Europe. Sources were cited as saying that Lazada will focus on selling locally produced goods, while AliExpress, Alibaba's global e-commerce platform which already has a presence in Europe, continues to provide China-made goods in Europe such as smartphone accessories and clothing.
Indonesia president meets with US officials and Tesla founder
According to the Jakarta Post, Indonesian president Joko Widodo has met with several American government officials and businesses over the past week, including Tesla's founder in Texas. During the ASEAN-US Special Summit, which was hosted by the US president, Widodo stressed the importance of ASEAN for peace and prosperity. Meanwhile, Tesla has sent representative to Indonesia to discuss potential investment in making EV battery.
Cambodia builds more public charging stations for EV
According to Nikkei Asia, Cambodia unveiled the country's second and third public EV charging stations in the coastal city of Sihanoukville last month, which were respectively built by Caltex and funded by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Cambodia reduced EV import duties last year and aims to electrify 40% of all cars and urban buses and 70% of motorbikes by 2050.
SP Group initiates solar energy projects in Vietnam
According to Tuoi Tre news, SP Group announced last week that it is supporting Vietnam's transition to sustainable energy and plans to invest up to VND12 trillion (US$539 million) in Vietnam by 2025. The Singapore-based electricity group targets 1.5GW capacity of rooftop solar energy by 2025, with its subsidiaries pledging to provide 1,000MW of renewable power in Vietnam.
