MANILA – On sunny days, Ateneo de Manila University assistant professor Joben Ilagan plugs his family’s new electric vehicle into their home in Pasig, Metro Manila, and charges it using power generated by solar panels on the roof.

The family installed the panels in 2023, after electricity bills surged while they were stuck at home during the Covid-19 pandemic. They had also spent about two years studying electric vehicles, but were in no rush to replace their two ageing but reliable petrol-powered cars.

Then the Iran war sent fuel prices soaring.

“That was the triggering point,” Joben Ilagan told The Straits Times.

His son Joe, who also teaches at Ateneo, said the family decided to act while car dealers were still offering discounts and before the conflict could push vehicle prices higher. They bought an electric BYD eMax 7 for close to 1.4 million pesos (S$29,230), below the list price of 1.498 million pesos.

As the family often works from home, it can charge the car during daylight hours.

“For the most part, it’s (electricity) practically free,” said Professor Ilagan.

The Ilagans’ experience reflects how a war thousands of kilometres away is accelerating clean-energy decisions in one of Asia’s most energy-vulnerable economies.

The conflict has helped accelerate decisions to invest in solar power and electric vehicles, as volatile fuel and electricity prices make imported fossil fuels feel increasingly costly. The Philippines imports about 98 per cent of its total crude oil from the Middle East, while the remaining two per cent comes from Malaysia and Brunei.

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