DTI to revive RACE program of incentives for ICE vehicles

THE Revitalizing the Automotive Industry for Competitiveness Enhancement (RACE) program will be revived, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said, citing the need to support the internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle industry due to continuing market demand.

“We will issue the guidelines very soon,” Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Tuesday. 

This reversed Ms. Roque’s earlier position of dropping the RACE program, with the government declaring its intention to focus on offering incentives to electric vehicle (EV) makers.

“We recognize that, of course, electric vehicles are important now, but there are still (gas-powered) vehicles that are being produced, like for example, the Tamaraw,” she said, referring to Toyota’s light commercial vehicle.

Ms. Roque noted that ICE vehicles are still in wide use by micro, small and medium enterprises. They are also favored by police, fire departments, and emergency services.

The RACE program originally sought to provide fiscal support of P9 billion for the domestic production of four-wheeled ICE models, with 100,000 units set as the threshold for qualifying for the incentives. 

It was dropped earlier this year in favor of the Electric Vehicle Incentive Strategy, which was meant to attract investments in local EV production.

Last week, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. Executive Vice-President Jose Maria M. Atienza called on the government to consider creating an incentives program for makers of ICE vehicles.

Mr. Atienza told reporters that Toyota is willing to enroll the Tamaraw for domestic-production incentives if such a program is offered.

In the first four months, auto sales declined 11.8% year on year to 132,867 units, according to the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. and the Truck Manufacturers Association.

EV sales accounted for 13.29% of total industry sales, the industry associations reported. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz