eSakay to see how to multiply number of e-jeepneys

Manila Electric Co.’s (Meralco) eSakay Inc. is looking at increasing the number units of its electronic jeepneys fleet plying the Makati to Mandaluyong route.

eSakay will be deploying 15 units of e-jeepney to ply the MRT Buendia-Mandaluyong City Hall route via Jupiter Street, operating from 5 a.m. to 12 midnight. The minimum fare is P9 for the first four kilometers and P15 for an end-to-end trip, eSakay chairman Alfredo Panlilio said when the e-jeepneys were launched in Makati City.

“Let's see, if there’s a possibility if the demand is there, we will expand it,” eSakay chairman Alfredo Panlilio said when the e-jeepneys were launched in Makati City on Friday.

Panlilio noted there is a need to study the option of increasing the number of units plying the Makati-Mandaluyong route.

“It is something we have to really look into as we understand this route better,” he said. “If there's an unserved demand in that route then we will decide at some point. But right now, based on our initial projections, fifteen will do.”

The e-jeepneys are equipped with GPS, Wi-Fi, CCTVs, automated fare collections system, and USB charging ports. The e-vehicles have a charging time of eight to 10 hours and can travel up to 100 kilometers at a maximum speed of 60 kilometers per hour. Each unit cost P2 million, Panlilio

In March 2018, Meralco secured an approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to incorporate eSakay Inc. as a “wholly owned subsidiary … to engaged in the business of owning, maintaining, and operating transport service networks of charging stations, batteries, and vehicles utilizing electric energy and other alternative energy sources.”

The newly formed Meralco unit has 1,127,098,705 outstanding shares and debt securities amounting to P18.5 billion. —VDS, GMA News