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Home » With New Charging Stations, Electric Cars Can Drive from Joburg to Cape Town

With New Charging Stations, Electric Cars Can Drive from Joburg to Cape Town

Some 30 electric charging points will be opening across the country in order to make sustainable driving in South Africa a more feasible option, it was announced as a caravan of electric cars crossed the country during Transport Month. #EVRTAfrica above the clouds. 🛑 Day 4, Stop 1: Sunrise drive to Valley of Desolation 🌅 […]

By Ted Botha
06-10-19 22:11
in Business
electric vehicle car south africa

Some 30 electric charging points will be opening across the country in order to make sustainable driving in South Africa a more feasible option, it was announced as a caravan of electric cars crossed the country during Transport Month.

On Thursday, seven cars, most notably three electric models from co-sponsors Jaguar, Nissan and BMW, left from Johannesburg on a 2,000 km, 9-day journey to Cape Town to promote electric-car travel and to install electric ACDC Dynamic charging stations at five places along the way. On Sunday, the group arrived in Nelson Mandela Bay.

At present there are reportedly just over 1,000 electric vehicles in South Africa, all imported, although there was a 100 percent increase in sales over the past year.

“We are keen to ensure that SA develops production capacity in what is anticipated to be a growing part of the car market,” trade and industry minister Ebrahim Patel said in August in a parliamentary reply to a question by the Democratic Alliance.

“To power the country’s journey towards sustainability, @generationehq will be installing approx 30 electric vehicle charging points at hotels, petrol stations, & other sites suited for EV charging in each of the cities visited, such as Jhb, Bloemfontein, PE & CT,” SANRAL (the country’s national road agency) said on Twitter.

The United Nations Environmental Programme said in a statement last week that it would be part of the entourage driving cross-country, the Electric Vehicle Road Trip, an event that has been held in the Middle East and Europe “to give space and visibility to the electric mobility industry.”

“Past events have resulted in the opening of 35 charging points across Europe and the Middle East. Global Electric Vehicle Road Trip is aiming to open 30 more in South Africa during the Electric Vehicle Road Trip Africa,” UNEP said.

FOR MORE INFO: You can follow #EVRTAfrica2019 and @generationehq on Twitter to get updates on the drive and more information. Several journalists and experts are on the trip and are giving information as they go.