Grab sees ecosystem strengthening as key to expanding electric vehicle adoption
Grab Indonesia believes that strengthening the ecosystem, from affordable ownership schemes to policy and infrastructure support, is key to expanding electric vehicle adoption in the transport sector.
Director of Mobility and Logistics Grab Indonesia Tyas Widyastuti said EV adoption still faces a number of challenges, including user concerns about driving range and vehicle ownership costs.
“There are many bottlenecks. First, from the psychological side of drivers, there is range anxiety,” Tyas said during a Transportation session at the Industrial Summit 2026 in Jakarta on Thursday.
According to Tyas, the choice of electric vehicles has grown compared with previous years, but vehicle prices remain a consideration for driver partners looking to switch.
For this reason, the company offers rental and rent-to-own schemes to reduce the upfront costs that partners must bear.
“Because they are expensive, the rental model is the solution. For cars, the challenge is regulatory certainty and government incentives so that prices become more affordable,” she said.
In her presentation, Grab noted that more than 28,000 electric vehicles were operating as of May 2026, nearly double the 2025 figure of more than 14,000 units. The company is targeting growth of more than three times the 2025 base, or around 42,000 units, by the end of the year.
Tyas said expanding EV adoption also requires collaboration with the government, vehicle manufacturers and academia, including in providing policy certainty, strengthening infrastructure and developing innovations that meet user needs.
Meanwhile, MOSTRANS CEO and lecturer at the School of Business and Management of the Bandung Institute of Technology (SBM ITB) Berty Argiyantari said the readiness level for EV use in the logistics sector differs between intra-city distribution and long-haul transport.
“For intra-city, it is starting to work. But for long haul, the obstacle is charging station infrastructure for large vehicles,” Berty said.
According to him, long-distance electric trucks require charging facilities suited to the characteristics of heavy vehicles, including stopping locations that take into account the security of the vehicle and the goods being transported.
Berty said battery weight and space requirements are also considerations in the economics of freight transport because logistics operators calculate the capacity that can be used to carry cargo.
“In logistics, we calculate cost per cubic metre. If cargo space is taken up by batteries, costs will rise and consumers may object,” he said.
From a policy perspective, the acceleration of battery-based electric motor vehicles (KBLBB) is currently based on Presidential Regulation Number 55 of 2019, which was amended through Presidential Regulation Number 79 of 2023. The amendment strengthens central and regional government support for the development of the KBLBB ecosystem.
The government is also strengthening support for the electric vehicle ecosystem. President Prabowo Subianto announced on 14 August 2026 that the government will provide incentives for one million electric motorcycles produced domestically by Indonesian companies.
Prabowo said the policy is aimed at lowering vehicle costs for the public, reducing imported fuel consumption, and enlarging the national electric motorcycle industry along with its supply chain for batteries, components, software and after-sales services.
In terms of expanding EV charging infrastructure, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) recorded that public electric vehicle charging stations (SPKLU) for four-wheeled vehicles reached around 4,892 units as of May 2026, with a target of 62,918 units by 2030.
Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono previously also stressed the importance of collaboration between the government, the private sector and the public to accelerate the electric vehicle transition while supporting more inclusive and sustainable development.
Furthermore, Tyas said ecosystem strengthening is needed so that electric vehicles become more operationally viable and accessible to more transport operators according to the characteristics of each mode.