ANDRIES MALHERBE: Time to move past our electric vehicle exceptionalism

Watching Siya Kolisi’s Springboks lift the Rugby World Cup for the fourth time after three one-point victories against the best of the best was a wonderful, era-defining moment. The positive effect it has had on our nation is palpable. Isn’t it amazing how often our country defies the odds, proving even our harshest critics wrong? 

SA certainly is an exceptional country. In our history we have overcome huge challenges that would have torn other nations apart. Indeed, SA exceptionalism — the belief that the country is unique or special in some way and not subject to the same rules or constraints as other countries — is something that fuels us. 

There is also a downside to this notion of exceptionalism. As proud as we are of our country, we must recognise that we are part of a global community of nations with which we co-operate and compete on the same playing field. We are not exempt from the rules of the game, even if we are able to draw on deep reserves to win the game. Likewise, when it comes to the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy we are subject to rules drawn up through global treaties and agreements.

The electric vehicle (EV) revolution under way all over the world will spare no country, no matter how exceptional they think they are. Already, 17% of new car sales globally are EVs — and are as high as 30% in China, the UK and the EU. On February 14 the European parliament gave formal approval to ban all internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles by 2035.

Major vehicle manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and BMW have stated their intention to phase out ICE vehicles altogether, and are on track to do so, some as soon as 2025.

What is more, many of them have expressed their willingness to manufacture their EVs in SA — a huge potential boon for economic growth and job creation when we really need it. 

The recent medium-term budget policy statement was widely expected to reveal details of the government’s plan to support the production of EVs, after a series of delays since October 2021. Unfortunately, scant details were forthcoming and it looks like we may need to wait until the finance minister’s budget speech in February. 

Meanwhile, other countries on the continent are leaving us behind: Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria and Ghana are forging ahead. As Volkswagen SA MD Martina Biene said recently: “Volkswagen has to prioritise countries globally and because of a missing policy SA doesn’t get high up on the list of countries to be prioritised, and why would we be? Every day and every month we are missing out on opportunities for investment that others are getting faster.”

Make no mistake, the EV revolution is coming to SA, and we need to be ready to take advantage of it. This is why the constant delays in providing a policy framework are so confounding. We need government to send out a strong signal that it is serious about promoting the local EV market and production. More specifically, it needs to offer policy certainty on a raft of issues.

For example, while many international markets have provided direct subsidies to EV manufacturers, it is not yet clear whether the SA government will directly intervene, by way of direct subsidies motor manufacturers and additional fiscal incentives, to specifically encourage EV sales. 

Charging network

Equally important is achieving certainty over the regulatory framework for charging infrastructure. This is crucial because without a network of charging stations it will not be feasible or desirable for drivers to transition to EVs. “Range anxiety” — the fear of being stranded should one’s EV run out of charge — is a psychological barrier that needs to be surmounted by establishing accessible charging infrastructure. 

Our firm, Zero Carbon Charge, is working to have in place a national network of 120 functioning solar-powered charging stations at 150km intervals by September 2025. These off-grid stations will enable motorist to fully charge their vehicles in just 20 minutes, with no fear of load-shedding interrupting the process. At the end of this month we are launching our first charging site in Wolmaransstad, the North West province, with the nationwide rollout to proceed from there.

Although we are confident we will achieve our targets, the absence of a clear regulatory framework has made engaging local municipalities on planning and land use approvals for our photovoltaic solar farms for the electrification of our EV charging stations more cumbersome than it needs to be.

What is urgently needed is a national policy directive that empowers officials to consider such applications swiftly with confidence, especially considering that our business not only empowers the transition to EVs, but also promotes energy resilience.

The private sector in SA is ready for EVs. Vehicle manufacturers are keen to invest in local production, creating thousands of manufacturing jobs, while firms like Zero Carbon Charge will create more than 80,000 local jobs for the construction, maintenance and staffing of our charging stations. And every car that is charged with clean SA sunshine means one fewer powered by dirty imported petrol — an important contributor to government’s localisation and decarbonisation drives. 

SA is an exceptional country in so many ways, but we will not be exempted from the global EV revolution. We need to compete — and win — the race to transition our cars away from fossil fuels to clean and reliable energy sources. But we can only do this in partnership with the government. As the Springboks showed us, we are “stronger together”. 

• Malherbe is co-founder of Zero Carbon Charge.