SUN Mobility, Pilipinas Shell to Bring Battery Swapping Technology to Philippines

A provider of energy infrastructure and services for electric vehicles (EVs), SUN Mobility, has announced that it has recently signed a strategic agreement with the Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation. The partnership will explore the pilot deployment of SUN Mobility’s advanced battery-swapping technology in the Philippines for two and wheel-wheel electric vehicles.

Philippines-based Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation boasts of an expansive growing network of mobility stations and expanding non-fuels retail offers, enabled by its integrated supply chain and corporate governance.

The partnership between SUN Mobility and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation supports the recently passed Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act (EVIDA) that aims to promote sustainable electric transportation in the Philippines. The partners aim to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the Philippines by providing a practical and economical solution with zero tailpipe emissions. For this pilot project, select Shell Mobility stations will soon deploy Swap Points™ that leverage state-of-the-art interoperable battery-swapping technology by SUN Mobility comprising of smart batteries, quick interchange stations, and smart network (cloud-based IoT backend software). This will allow 2 and 3-wheel electric vehicles to swap batteries at select Shell mobility stations in less than two minutes and provide a cost-effective solution with significant range. The pilot is expected to launch within the first half of 2023.

Jolo Valdez, E-Mobility and Innovations Manager for Pilipinas Shell shared, “Shell is happy to work with both the private and public sectors to develop solutions that will decarbonize mobility and transport. Both 2-wheel and 3-wheel electric vehicles are projected to be a major use case for logistics companies and other fleet operators in the coming decades, and this pilot deployment aims to test the feasibility of smart battery swapping services and technology for the Philippine B2B use case. We are also happy to receive support from our government agencies to test these new technologies and solutions.”

According to Department of Energy – Energy Utilization Management Bureau (DOE-EUMB) Director Patrick Aquino, “The pilot deployment and its success will definitely be a pathfinder for similar technologies and solutions in the EV space. We hope these new solutions will encourage more businesses and drivers to switch to electric vehicles.”

Dr. Rafaelita Aldaba, Department of Trade and Industry Undersecretary for Competitiveness and Innovation, said that the pilot deployment of Sun Mobility and Shell “will be a pioneer for smart battery swapping in the Philippines. We are looking forward to see how this can enable and support EV adoption and possibly even EV parts manufacturing in the country.”

Speaking on the occasion, Ajay Goel, Co-Founder and Executive Director of SUN Mobility said, “SUN Mobility is proud to collaborate with Pilipinas Shell to explore the mass adoption of EVs across the region, starting with the Philippines. In the future, we intend to bring our industry-leading technology along with our substantial on-ground experience after having deployed 250+ Swap Points™ in 18 cities across India, powering over 55 million km and ~3 million swaps so far.”

During the signing ceremony, Randy Del Valle, Pilipinas Shell’s Vice President and General Manager for Mobility, shared, “Shell supports EV adoption in the country. We are already a global leader in the EV space, and we are optimistic that working with SUN Mobility will unlock practical, economical, and convenient EV solutions specific to the needs of the Philippine market.”  

SUN Mobility, a joint venture between SUN Group and Maini Group, co-founded by Chetan Maini, previously founder of Reva Electric Car Company now Mahindra Electric, Uday Khemka, Vice Chairman of SUN Group, and Ajay Goel, Co-Founder & Executive Director. In 2019, Bosch acquired stakes in SUN Mobility and has been a strategic partner in accelerating the technological evolution of the company. Vitol, the world’s largest independent oil trading organization, is also a strategic investor in the company. The firm is working with fleet operators, shared mobility providers, cities and automotive OEMs across all platforms including two and three wheelers SUN Mobility has deployed 250+ Swap Points™ in 18 cities across India, powering over 55 million kms and 3 million swaps in the country so far.

SUN Mobility recently claimed to create the “fastest charging station in the world”. The station can charge in one hour and can do more than 200 swaps in a day. The firm also announced the launch of its battery-swapping network for electric vehicles in Mumbai, Maharashtra in June 2022 in collaboration with Amazon India.