SA must wean itself off coal for EVs to make sense, says VWSA

SA must wean itself off coal if locally produced electric vehicles (EVs) — a key element of the government’s decarbonisation plan — are to be climate friendly, the country head of Volkswagen said on Wednesday.

Wealthy nations have already committed $8.5bn to help SA cut its emissions. The government is seeking roughly 10 times that amount, including R128bn to fund a transition to EVs.

Introducing EVs onto the domestic market makes little sense, however, while SA remains dependent on fossil fuels for power generation, said Volkswagen SA (VWSA) MD Martina Biene.

"The fundamental thing is that finally the source of power can’t be coal in the long-term for us to make EVs a thing which is not only an emission-free vehicle but also helps to save the climate," she said.

SA produces nearly 90% of its total energy supply from coal and has struggled to implement plans for new renewables capacity.

Biene said on the sidelines of a conference in Johannesburg that VW was counting on progress towards decarbonising the power sector to help it reach its own emissions-reduction targets.

"We want to be carbon neutral as a manufacturer, global manufacturer, by 2050 is the ultimate goal.… It only makes sense with renewable energy," she said.

Three-quarters of cars produced by SA’s motor industry, which accounts for 5% of GDP and more than 100,000 jobs, are exported, mostly to European countries.

But with Britain planning to ban sales of new internal combustion vehicles from 2030 and the EU following suit in 2035, the government has warned of an existential threat to the sector.

Biene said last month that the German carmaker’s SA facility is unlikely to produce EVs before 2035, and in the meantime would develop new markets for its petrol and diesel vehicles in Asia, Latin America and Africa.

Reuters