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China’s BYD has surged to become the joint largest EV seller in Egypt

March 06, 2025

German car manufacturers Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and BMW contributed 42% of Egypt’s electric car sales in January 2025, highlighting their growing influence in the North African country. The firms cumulatively sold 268 electric cars out of a total of 637 cars that were sold in the period, during which demand for EVs soared.

  • January’s electric car sales already equal 22% of the 2,938 electric car sales that Egypt managed in the entirety of 2024. Should the sales continue at this pace, the North African country will record more than 7,000 new electric car registrations in 2025.

  • But the German carmakers are facing a major threat from Chinese automakers. China’s BYD, the world’s largest EV firm, has already surged to become the joint largest electric car seller in Egypt (BYD and Mercedes-Benz both sold 127 units in January).

  • Our take: None of the German car manufacturers will manage to compete with the Chinese brands, particularly BYD, for long as they enjoy massive economies of scale and state-backed subsidies… Read more (2 min)

Motor vehicle ownership in Africa is projected to double from the current 73 to 150 per 1,000 people by 2050. This projected growth presents an opportunity for African countries to accelerate adoption of EVs. The decline in global EV prices will help, but some countries are more prepared than others for this transition. 

  • Africa’s population is projected to double to 2.5 billion in 2050, opening up a vast new market for motor vehicles. As continents such as Europe implement phased bans on fuel vehicles, Africa is expected to be the dumping ground for used fuel vehicles.

  • Yet, there are positive signs that Africa is joining the global transition to EVs at an increasing rate. But for this to last well into 2050, EV prices have to keep dropping to beat the cheap imported vehicles. Further, the continent must do more to accelerate the construction of charging stations.

  • Our take: For faster adoption of EVs in Africa to happen, African governments must roll out policies to attract investment in charging stations, financing and manufacturing of EVs… Read more (2 min)

Our mobility jobs board this week features 12 vacancies, with North Africa leading with seven, followed by South and West Africa (two each), and East Africa (one). Egypt’s Shift EV, which last month listed 13 jobs, has the most openings (seven), spanning marketing, project management, finance, procurement, and engineering.

  • Other companies hiring include GoMetro and Charge in South Africa, Proxy Mobility in Senegal, EV24.africa in Côte d'Ivoire, and Dodai in Ethiopia. The most sought talent include marketing, engineering, finance, and supply chain.

  • North Africa leads in hiring as Egypt emerges as a key EV manufacturing and fleet electrification hub, driving demand for specialised talent in technology, operations, and commercial expansion.

  • Job Board: Exciting EV jobs are open across Africa, click read more to explore the latest openings… Read more (2 min)

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Namuyiga Irene (Center), General Manager of Safeway Rightway Uganda, at last week’s monthly cycling event

Events

🗓️ Train for the assembly and maintenance of e-motorcycles at Allada, Benin (Mar 22)

🗓️ Register for a webinar on accelerating women's participation in e-mobility (Mar 10)

🗓️ Brainstorm on Africa’s EV trajectory at Africa E-mobility Alliance’s Q&A session (Mar 12)

Various 

📢 Charge’s call for landowners to host charging stations deadline set for March 31st

📝 E-Safiri, EVC Point Nigeria, and ARC Ride get shortlisted for Energy Heroes Awards 2025 by SEforALL

🚌 Nigeria automotive council launches 8-Seater electric shuttle bus competition to foster innovation in Nigerian universities

Seen on LinkedIn 

Msingo John, an EV expert, says, “It's not just about bringing the cars in. A whole ecosystem needs to be built. That can only be done by having the numbers on the ground. This is directly pegged to the cost of buying these cars for the consumer. “

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