House Ways and Means Chair Joey Sarte Salceda (Albay, 2nd district) believes that the future is nickel due to the promising outcomes that it could bring about 10 years from now.
In a policy outline titled, “The Future in Nickel,” Salceda highlighted that nickel could be the answer to the long-standing struggles of electric vehicles and renewable energy.
“The Philippines is a top producer of nickel. The future of electric vehicles and renewable is nickel, because it is the missing link to one long-standing problem: How do you stabilize batteries so that they last long enough and can store large amounts of energy?” Salceda said.
“In the past, renewable energy was not always relied upon because of fluctuations in supply. When there’s no wind, there is little wind-powered energy supply. Solar energy requires consistent sunlight, and so on. With powerful battery technology, driven by nickel and cobalt, another Philippine product, renewable energy can be stored better, so that fluctuations are managed,” Salceda added.
Salceda continued the product poses major advantages, one of which is helping revive the economy after the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
“In other words, we now have the power and the prospects to create millions of jobs in renewable energy, battery manufacturing, sustainable mining, and related sectors. This will be a key driver of economic recovery post-COVID, but we have to be very wise with our policies,” he shared.
Around 1.3 million jobs are foreseen to be created in nickel-related industries.
“The world appears to see that this is the future. Top nickel-buyer and electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla is already larger in market cap than all other major car manufacturers combined. Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are also rising. Nickel will be very big, and as one of the world’s largest producers of nickel, we will be very important, if we will be wise.”
Since nickel-related industries are pictured to be extremely operational soon, Salceda assured that he eyes on working with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to ensure the effective and sustainable execution of this endeavor.
