Will we see more Electric Vehicles on SA’s roads?

For many, electric cars are just gimmicky tech “gadgets” that will leave you stranded on your way home as you scramble for a 50kW charger to add some “juice”.  While this might be the case in South Africa, for the many other countries around the world, Electric Vehicles (EVs) are slowly but surely replacing internal combustion engine vehicles and before you know it.

Statistics in Europe show that for the first time, electric cars outsold diesel-powered cars in the month of September and are projected to account for 10% of all car sales in 2020 and 15% in 2021.

With an estimated access rate to electricity of just 43%, the adoption of electric cars in Africa has been very low, to say the least, with very few statistics available to show any significant takes. According to a survey conducted by AutoTrader in partnership with generation.e, 2% of South African consumers own an EV (Electric Vehicle) and at least 13% have driven one.  However, according to Autotrader CEO George Mienie, there’s still hope:

“EVs will gain in popularity. The survey shines a spotlight on the gap between consumer perception and industry assumptions to assist stakeholders such as dealers, manufacturers, marketers and government bodies to drive action-based discussions.”

Findings of the Survey were revealed to the public at the Smarter Mobility Africa e-event which was held on 28th October 2020. The aim of the Survey was to provide insights into the penetration, perceptions, expectations, purchase intent, and awareness of South African consumers about EVs.

Speaking about the results, George Mienie said, “The hope is that these insights lead to a tomorrow that is greener, cleaner and mutually beneficial to the automotive industry, and most importantly, the South African car buying consumer.”

In many ways and for many reasons, Electric Vehicles are surely the future and it remains to be seen how fast they’ll be adopted in South Africa. You can download the full Survey report here.