FG to Ratify Electric Vehicle Development Plan This Month

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The federal government would ratify the Electric Vehicle Development Plan in the next two weeks.

The Director General National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu, made this disclosure yesterday, in Abuja at the presentation of two locally assembled electric vehicles with charging infrastructure by the CEO of Jet Motor, Oluwemimo Osanipin.

Aliyu said the ratification would set up physical, non-physical and other programmes to support local production of electric vehicles, stressing such initiative will also fully support the scale up and production of electric vehicles in the country.

“We are ratifying that document in the next two weeks. And as soon as we do that we will get all the necessary buying of all the relevant stakeholders. We will put it in front of the senior leadership and once we get it approved we hope the implementation will begin,” Aliyu said.

He stated the document would require Nigeria to meet certain percentages and targets in terms of local production, adding it will look at least 30 per cent local production of electric vehicles and the gradual increase in the number of electric vehicles in the country.

The DG NADDC noted that following the ratification of the document there would be orders that would mandate all federal government MDAs, state governments, local governments and companies doing government contracts to purchase and use electric vehicles.

He said that the transition by Nigeria from fuel powered vehicle to electric vehicle would be a phrased approach adding the ultimate target is to achieve a net zero by 2060 in terms of environmental sustainability.

He said apart from providing comfortable means of transportation electric vehicle will have local content in them in terms of physical product, local content and intellectual property that go in its development.

“There is nothing that this country lacks in form of human capital. We just need to be more proactive, productive and progressive. The era of electric vehicle has come, whether it is to protect the environment or for economic reason. It is a solution we must pursue and give all support. So, as Nigerians we need to adopt it, we need to own it and run with it,” Aliyu said.

The NADDC DG said electric car was versatile while hoping to work with the private sector towards the mass deployment of fast charging points on highways in major cities across the country.

The CEO of Jet Motor, Osanipin said electric car is different because it does require spare parts, is easy to maintain and unlike cars with ICU that run on PMS.