The movement toward a greener, fossil fuel-independent country is no longer just a national government development goal but also an achievable objective on a personal level with the introduction of reasonably priced EVs or electric vehicles.
Demonstration Wednesday of the two types of electric vehicles took place a the Asahi field, with people test driving and learning more about the e-cars from a Japanese vendor T-Plan Inc.
The vehicles designed for different needs come with a 2-person capacity to over 10-person capacity. The ones showcased this week were 2 and 4-person capacities vehicles.
The vehicles have batteries that are charged via a solar charging station and can go up to 120 kilometers (or 60 miles) on one fully charged battery. In other words, instead of fueling with gasoline, it fuels with electricity stored in the battery.
The private company under a grant from JICA is conducting a survey on the perception of the use of EVs in Palau.
Use of electric vehicles reduces emission that contributes to climate change and reduces dependency on the fossil fuel.
Many of the well-known car manufacturers that Palauans are familiar with are also manufacturers of EVs, such as Nissan, Honda, Toyota and others.