TessDrive examines how green urban planning and intelligent energy infrastructure are converging across Southeast Asia—from Vinhomes Green Paradise entering the global voting phase of New7Wonders’ “7 Wonders of Future Cities” campaign in Vietnam, to ACMobility’s Greenstrum and Huawei Philippines unveiling integrated Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) for commercial EV charging in Bonifacio Global City.
Green Paradise global vote for ‘7 Wonders of Future Cities’
Vinhomes Green Paradise, a flagship coastal urban development located in Can Gio, Ho Chi Minh City, has officially entered the global public voting phase of the “7 Wonders of Future Cities” campaign organized by New7Wonders. Selected from over 260 international submissions, Vinhomes Green Paradise stands as the campaign’s first official participant.
Three pillars of next-generation urbanism
Evaluated against New7Wonders’ sustainability and innovation benchmarks, Vinhomes Green Paradise integrates ecological conservation with digital urban management across three core pillars:
Environmental and nature (17% construction density): Spanning 2,870 hectares alongside the sea and bordering the Unesco-recognized Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve, the masterplan maintains an ultra-low construction density of approximately 17%, dedicating more than 930 hectares exclusively to green spaces and waterways;
Smart city governance: Embeds internet of things (IoT), big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) directly into municipal utilities, resource optimization, and real-time environmental monitoring;
Human-centric ecosystem: Anchored on a people-first design framework offering internationally benchmarked healthcare, education, senior living, sports, and cultural facilities.
Vinhomes chief executive officer Nguyen Thu Hang stated: “We believe the cities of the future will be defined by the value they create for people and the planet. Vinhomes Green Paradise embodies this aspiration through its ESG++ standards, harmonizing residents’ quality of life, technology, environmental stewardship, and long-term economic value.”
New7Wonders director and chairman of the campaign Jean-Paul de la Fuente added during the official voting switch-on ceremony: “Today we have switched on more than a voting platform—we have switched on a global conversation about the future of our cities, and for the next year, people everywhere have the opportunity to discover, engage with, and champion the places they believe should become global symbols of urban progress.”
Global citizens can cast their votes online by registering their name, country, and e-mail address at the official New7Wonders Future Cities Portal.
Greenstrum, Huawei showcase BESS-integrated EV charging
Greenstrum, the electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure subsidiary of ACMobility, and Huawei Technologies Philippines Inc have staged their inaugural business-to-business (B2B) technology showcase at the Huawei showroom in Bonifacio Global City.
Titled “The New Energy Advantage,” the briefing demonstrated to real estate developers and academic institutions how pairing battery energy storage systems (BESS) with commercial EV chargers resolves electrical capacity bottlenecks while reducing peak utility rates.
Smart load-shifting sans costly grid upgrades
Commercial buildings installing multiple fast EV chargers frequently hit contracted electrical demand ceilings. Huawei’s BESS platform solves this challenge by storing grid or solar electricity during low-cost, off-peak hours and discharging stored power during high-demand periods—eliminating the need for costly building transformer upgrades.
Greenstrum chief operating officer Carl Decleodt emphasized the end-to-end engineering value of the partnership: “Greenstrum and Huawei bring together expertise in implementation and the capability to do the design engineering in order to optimize the output of a battery storage system for the client. We don’t come in just to provide hardware. We come in and provide a solution. One of those solutions is BESS. Through this technology, we can help you implement savings immediately with a small 2-sqm footprint. It also opens up your business to having your own EV charging station.”
Industry adoption insights
Participating property developers highlighted the immediate operational value of combining storage with EV charging infrastructure:
Managing contracted demand: DMCI Homes electrical engineer Daniel Garcia noted: “Having greater power demand versus contracted demand has a big impact on the chargers we’re incorporating, and I think that BESS can help us greatly.”
Long-term return on investment: Daiichi Properties Inc purchasing officer Liezl Mico added: “Looking at it right now, BESS is an investment. You accumulate bigger savings the more you use the equipment, and at the end of the day, it’s a win-win situation.”
Targeting property developers, hospitality operators, academic campuses, and cold-storage logistics hubs, Greenstrum and Huawei plan to host additional enterprise briefings nationwide.
Property managers and fleet operators can explore site assessments via Greenstrum or e-mail inquiries@greenstrum.com.: