A cross-section of industry players, financiers and policymakers in the auto market, has revealed that rising fuel costs are pushing Nigerians towards electric vehicles.
The critical stakeholders also explained that low running cost and flexible financing are making the shift increasingly practical, adding that the shift is being driven by everyday pressure.
They shared the insights in Abuja yesterday at the Abuja Compact on Electric Mobility Roundtable, which brought together government officials, financiers, operators and clean energy experts.
According to them, as petrol prices rise and transport costs take a bigger share of incomes, electric vehicles are beginning to look less like a futuristic option and more like a practical way for people and businesses to stay afloat.
Speaking at the event, Omolara Obileye, who represented the chairman, Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles (Pi-CNG & EV), Ismaeel Ahmed, a lawyer, said the financial case for electric vehicles was becoming harder to ignore, especially after the removal of fuel subsidy.
“Today, charging an electric vehicle for a 200-kilometre journey would cost approximately N4,500. The same journey on petrol would cost about N22,500. That represents a five-to-one cost advantage in favour of electric vehicles,” she said.
On his part, Yusuf Suleiman, the chief executive officer of Bankrol Camel EV and Blue Camel Energy Ltd, said the opportunity went beyond transportation, describing electric mobility as a gateway to broader economic growth.