Western EV giant officially enters Philippine market
Amid the rising cutthroat battle among electric vehicles in the country, Western EV giant, Tesla, officially entered the fray just recently. During the launch ceremony held at the Uptown Parade Mall in Bonifacio Global City, Tesla Asian regional director, Isabel Fan, remarked how the country is already ready for their Western technology and innovation.
“I picked the Philippines because it’s the newest market in the world,” she said during her speech at the electric marque’s launch.
“At Tesla, our mission is to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy,” Fan, who has been with the company since 2014, added.
“I really wanted to make a difference. We wanted to educate the market and really change for a sustainable future,” she continued.
In fact, according to her, some of the countries in the world have 50 percent of their newly- registered vehicles that are already pure EVs.
“That is really the best option moving forward,” she averred.
Flagship Experience Center and supercharging stations
Aside from officially launching the brand, Tesla also opened its 1,900-square-meter showroom, which is also within the mall’s vicinity in BGC, Taguig City. The showroom can accommodate a three-car display and service areas. The center also has an available charging unit, making it a one-stop sales and service hub for the brand.
Alliance Global Group, Inc. president and CEO, Kevin Tan, who was also in attendance during the launch, said that apart from the lease agreement for Tesla’s Experience Center, the parties have also agreed on the deployment of charging stations.
“They will deploy all the charging stations all over our malls and our properties,” he shared.
For starters, Tesla operates the world’s largest fast-charging network with more than 6,000 charging stations.
The company has the so-called ”Superchargers,” which can charge up to 120 km in just 5 minutes. Here in the country, the first indoor Supercharger station, featuring four units, will open soon at the basement parking of Uptown Mall.
Supercharging will be available on a pay-per-use basis, providing Tesla owners with an exceptional charging experience at P19 per kWh. A full charge for Tesla vehicles would cost approximately P1,140.
2 Tesla vehicles initially available locally
During the launch, Fan also shared that they have already delivered more than seven million Tesla vehicles all over the world. This actually equated to about 20 million metric tons of carbon dioxide reduced in 2023.
Locally, Tesla announced that the Model Y, the world’s bestselling vehicle and the Model 3, the world’s bestselling electric sedan, will initially be available.
The Model Y, which boasts a range of up to 533 km (WLTP), starts at P 2,369,000; while the Model 3, which can reach a range of 629 km (WLTP) on a single charge, starts at P2,109,000.
