- Mobility Rising
- Posts
- Expect to see more Indian-made electric cars on Africa’s roads
Expect to see more Indian-made electric cars on Africa’s roads
Dear subscriber, this is a prototype. Please help us with feedback and tips. Just press reply.
 | South Africa is one of 100 countries that are set to receive the e-Vitara, Maruti Suzuki’s first electric car, launched Thursday. Suzuki is India’s largest carmaker, and plans to make 67,000 units of the e-Vitara by March 2026. It is the latest Indian company to introduce EVs to Africa, following Tata Motors, Sun Mobility and Switch Mobility. Mahindra has said it will follow suit. |
The majority of EV companies in Africa are from China, which also remains the main source of EV parts and components that are used for assembly in Africa.
Indian companies like TVS and Bajaj currently dominate Africa’s motorcycle market. Automakers like Maruti Suzuki and Tata are looking to borrow a leaf from their playbook to capture a share of the continent’s growing EV market.
Our take: African drivers should expect more choices in terms of vehicle size, range and price points from new EV companies entering the market… Read more (2 min)
 | Alpha Mobility, a Canadian electric vehicle company, has opted for contract assembly of its three-wheelers through Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers (KVM) instead of building its own plant. Contract assembly of EVs in Africa is growing and offers a faster and more cost-efficient pathway to scale EV production. It will also help new players to reduce starting capital expenditure. |
The contract assembly model is already being adopted by fuel-vehicle assemblers transitioning to hybrid production. Associated Vehicle Assemblers (AVA) is engaging with around 13 potential EV clients to utilise its 10,000-unit annual EV assembly capacity.
Contract assembly has historically boosted vehicle ownership in the fuel sector by lowering prices and offering a wider variety of models.
Our take: This model will only work for electric four-wheelers and three-wheelers as opposed to two-wheelers… Read more (2 min)
 | Where do you take your electric motorcycle battery when it loses its capacity? This is a question that many electric motorcycle operators grapple with. The battery is costly, and replacing it is an expensive affair. This is one of the reasons why Roam will next year start to buy back used batteries from its customers, says Roam Regional Sales Operations Manager Habib Lukaya. |
In an interview with Mobility Rising, Mr Lukaya said the battery buyback model will enable riders to lower the cost of purchasing a new battery. The battery is the most expensive component of an electric motorcycle.
“We will buy at a percentage based on the state of health and other parameters. You get half discounted for the new battery that has better cooling, telemetry, range and GPS tracking,” says Mr Lukaya.
To read the full interview… click here (5 min)
Flora Limukii, Spiro’s head of public relations and comms, moderates a panel during the Africa PR Week
Events
📅 Register for Automechanica Johannesburg (Oct 28)
📅 Book a slot at E-Mobility and Infrastructure Africa Summit (Nov 26)
📅 Attend the Women and Transport Conference in Kenya (Dec 3)
Jobs
👨🏻💻 Join Gamma Mobility as a Senior Backend Engineer (Nigeria)
📋 Become an Inventory Coordinator at Ampersand (Kenya)
💼 Apply for Direct Sales Manager at Dodai (Ethiopia)
Various
🔌 Zembo and Total Energies to launch a swapping station in Uganda
⚡ Bboxx and UniBatt to set a new standard for battery-as-a-service for EVs
📖 BasiGo’s team complete their battery training course with CATL
Seen on LinkedIn
Ayman Mohamed, Co-founder of Electrified, says, “The current spread of stations is not fully optimized. Placement should be based on utilization rate rather than simply installing more units in low-demand areas. Prioritizing high-traffic charging zones will maximize efficiency and meet real demand.”