E-mobility players push for enhanced electric vehicle adoption

They say the Kenyan market is ripe for the uptake of e-mobility with support from the government and other stakeholders.

The players were speaking at the unveiling of the new Moja EV electric vehicles showroom in Nairobi, the exclusive distributor of NETA Electric Vehicles in Kenya and the rest of Africa.

“We have no choice; the policy has to change. We will use Kenya to ship the cars to the rest of Africa with EVs,” said Eric Lumulas from Moja EV.

Vice President of NETA Electric Vehicles, Zhou Jiang, has also announced an ambitious plan to establish a cutting-edge manufacturing plant in Kenya to serve the entire African region.

The new showroom is showcasing new units from NETA Electric Vehicles which will cost Ksh.4 million, with negotiations underway for a financing plan with local banks.

“We are working towards having a financing solution to enable customers to acquire electric cars in Kenya as part of our sustainability efforts. We will be making an announcement soon,” remarked Catherine Gachanja, DTB Asset Finance Head.

Joy Wanyonyi, Head of Business at Associated Vehicle Assemblers (AVA), is rooting for local assembly of EVs to boost employment in the country, technology transfers, and growth of the sector.

“There is a national automotive policy that has not been assented. If duties are low, locally assembled EVs will be more affordable. That's what we are lobbying for the government to support,” said Wanyonyi.

Moja EV says it will also complement Kenya Power's efforts of setting up 100 charging stations in Nairobi, Mombasa, and other towns by the end of the year.