The first electric car assembled within the shores of Nigeria has made a debut at the country’s capital city Abuja.
This is the second showcasing of the car made by Stallion Motors.
Lagos was the first city to debut the country’s first electric vehicle called Hyundai KONA, and the Lagos unveiling was attended by the State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The unveiling of the car in Abuja was attended by the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Inuwa Abdulahi, the CEO of Stallion Motors, Anat Badjatya, the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, the Director-General National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu, and the Minister of Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo.
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What To Know About Nigeria’s First Electric Car
The Hyundai KONA was said to have a battery that lasts for five years with a manufacturer’s warranty.
It is 100 percent electric, meaning no emissions.
It has a 482-kilometre range and a charging period of nine hours.
Stallion Motors CEO, Anat Badjatya, disclosed that the car was assembled in Nigeria and has low noise and low maintenance.
He added that Nigeria could not be left behind in the emergence of electric cars as the replacement of petrol cars.
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The trade minister Adebayo said of the introduction of electric cars into the country, “Slowly and gradually, like in other parts of the world, there is an increased awareness of what people can buy into. When people start purchasing these vehicles it will give an opportunity for other people to create business for themselves by setting up charging point business.”
Badjatya, on the other hand, said that electric cars were the future and it cannot be wished away.
Badjatya said, “This is the future; there is no doubt about that. We can’t wish it away that we don’t have power because the entire auto world is embracing review. Slowly we are getting away from the tank and petrol engine, and we don’t want to be left out. I do believe that an electric vehicle is the future.”
Electric Vehicles Numbers
In 2019, electric vehicles sold globally surpassed 2.1 million, boosting the stock of electric cars to 7.2 million.
Of the global car sales, electric vehicles made up about 2.6 percent, and in 2019, about 1 percent of the global car stock with a 40 percent year-on-year increase, as reported by IEA in its Global EV Outlook report.
Sales of electric vehicles continue to rise. In 2010, only 17,000 electric vehicles were on the road and nine years later, the number ballooned to 7.2 million.
China makes up 47 percent of the global ownership of electric vehicles currently in use.
