Immediate and future challenges of using electric vehicles for promoting energy efficiency in Africa’s clean energy transition

Abstract

Electric vehicle (EV) adoption in Africa is being driven by both structural and non-structural pressures. Hurdles to EV adoption as a tool for low carbon development are explained, drawing on interviews with energy specialists from Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, and Cameroon. Findings point to multiple-scale tensions between energy transition and access, between policy design and implementation, and between the spread of EVs and the power generation required to spur growth. Existing EV infrastructure is dependent on stranded assets from fossil fuel sources that are about to be abandoned for Africa’s power supply. Scaling up renewable energy systems will be more efficient if operational costs for fossil fuel infrastructure are switched to capital costs. This calls for a fresh business strategy designed to address Africa's desire to ensure energy efficiency that will spur the acceptance of EVs, while also deploying renewable energy to reach global climate goals. By using a combination of market and policy instruments, a new regulatory framework, accessible financing, and stronger price signals can help phase out aging fossil fuel infrastructure and spark an efficiency revolution.