(iStock via Getty Images)
The LRMT Blue Line aims to carry 175,000 to 200,000 passengers daily, with a potential to reach 500,000 daily users upon completion.
Additionally, Possible Electric Vehicle Solution, a Nigerian electric mobility company, is gearing up to establish EV assembly plants in Nigeria, projecting an annual production of 10,000 EVs, including minibuses, tricycles, pickups, and taxis. This development aligns with Africa’s growing EV sector, which is forecasted to reach a value of $21.4 billion by 2027.
South Africa
South Africa is making a strong play for the adoption and production of EVs. The country’s top online retailer, Takealot, has introduced a new fleet of electric trucks in collaboration with renewable energy company Aeversa and vehicle supplier Avis. The companies also revealed the largest DC fast charging station in the Western Cape, with a remarkable 240 kW capacity for 2023, setting a commercial vehicle industry precedent. The electric trucks, operational from October 2023, are part of Takealot’s sustainable e-commerce initiative in South Africa.
Meanwhile, two clean energy companies, Divaine Growth Solutions and Oando, are collaborating to launch an EV ecosystem in Cape Town. The pilot phase includes procuring electric buses with varying passenger capacities, installing charging stations, and supporting renewable power projects throughout Cape Town. The partnership aims to stimulate job opportunities in manufacturing and research, foster innovation, align with regional and global climate objectives, and enhance grid stability while strengthening the local EV industry.
Egypt
Egypt is spearheading North African EV efforts. Private auto manufacturer EgyptSat Auto, in partnership with the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, plans to launch Egypt’s first locally produced EV by early 2024. The company also received a golden license to establish an EV factory that will produce electric passenger cars, buses, motorcycles, and charging stations, generating 500 jobs and fostering entrepreneurship in Egypt’s growing EV industry.
Additionally, Egypt’s Supreme Council for Vehicle Construction gave Shift EV and BluEV, two local electric mobility companies, the greenlight to convert over 100,000 internal combustion vehicles into electric drives. Shift EV aims to convert 100,000 vehicles in the next five years, focusing on pickups and minivans, while BluEV plans to convert two- and three-wheelers, offering battery leasing and a network of battery swap stations. These projects support Egypt’s shift toward EVs, driven by government initiatives and international partnerships.
Kenya
Kenya Power, the nation’s primary electricity distributor, is on a four-year mission to convert its 2,000 gasoline and diesel vehicles to electric models, in line with East Africa’s growing adoption of EVs fueled by abundant renewable energy resources. The company’s strategy involves retrofitting existing vehicles and procuring new EVs, capitalizing on robust electricity generation capacity and facilitating off-peak EV charging.
In addition to Kenya Power, private enterprises like Kenya-based start-up Roam; Kenyan-Swedish start-up Opibus; and Kenyan e-mobility company BasiGo are actively advancing EV developments in the country, with BasiGo securing $6.6 million for local electric bus production and aiming to deliver 15 buses in 2023.
Rwanda
In East Africa, Rwanda is witnessing the emergence of a start-up ecosystem focused on EVs, particularly electric two-wheelers, with over 20 start-ups raising more than $25 million in investments by the end of 2021. In October 2019, Volkswagen commenced electric car production in Rwanda’s capital Kigali, while Siemens plans to install 15 charging stations in the capital. This followed Ampersand, a Rwandan company, introducing electric bicycles equipped with batteries boasting a 75-km range.
Uganda
Uganda’s Kiira Motors Corporation, a state-owned facility, has demonstrated its commitment to electric mobility by creating two battery-powered cars and a solar-powered bus: dubbed the Kayoola Electric Vehicle Series. Developed through internal green mobility technology at Kiira Motors in collaboration with Chinese Equipment Manufacturer Motor Co. Ltd., the electric bus can carry up to 90 passengers and has a range of nearly 300 km, outperforming diesel-powered buses.
Newer articles:
- Ethiopia, South Sudan Agree to Deepen Cooperation - 02/11/2023 07:02
- Saudi Arabia donates medical supplies to South Sudan - 02/11/2023 06:14
- South Sudan: Years into a climate disaster, these people are eating the unthinkable - 02/11/2023 06:00
- Disease outbreaks rise in Sudan as health system breaks down - 02/11/2023 03:32
- Aid Delivery in Sudan Faces Bureaucracy, Security Challenges - 02/11/2023 03:10
Older news items
- Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Arrives in South Sudan for Official Visit - 01/11/2023 06:02
- About 1 mln South Sudanese refugees return home in 5 years: UNHCR - 01/11/2023 05:51
- Security Council Sanctions Committee Concerning South Sudan Receives Briefing on Behalf of Emergency Relief Coordinator in Pursuance of Resolution 2664 (2022) - 01/11/2023 05:06
- South Sudan Needs Sincere, Unconditional Love to “be in peace”: Catholic Bishop - 01/11/2023 05:00
- The International Press Institute (IPI) calls on states to take concrete action to end impunity for crimes against the press - 01/11/2023 04:03
Latest news items (all categories):
- South Sudan’s ‘Game Of Thrones’ Continues – Analysis - 01/12/2024 17:47
- South Sudan secured over 282 150 doses of oral cholera vaccine to contain the cholera outbreak - 01/12/2024 17:43
- The idea of one nation and one people is a distortion of our reality!!! - 29/11/2024 12:54
- In South Sudan with aid boss John Rynne: 'The maps drawn in colonial times are starting to erode' - 29/11/2024 12:47
- 'They have nothing': Aid workers struggle to save lives at edge of war-torn Sudan - 29/11/2024 12:36
Random articles (all categories):
- New round of South Sudan talks to open in Ethiopian capital - 10/02/2014 10:10
- Crash halts flight of sick in S Sudan - News24 - 18/11/2012 14:26
- Sudan’s unrest might destabilize peace in South Sudan: report - 30/12/2018 01:39
- 350 Chollo (Shilluk) women, girls, Children abducted! - 12/05/2014 15:45
- South Sudan citizens 'deliberately starved' by warring parties: UN - 20/02/2020 06:55
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 58277 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22212 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21350 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 18861 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 17966 times