Electric vehicles (EVs) are fast becoming a popular transport option around the world. Several large vehicle brands have announced their plans to launch their own EVs within the next two years, including Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar Land Rover. With the imminent arrival of EVs on South African soil, the next major challenge for the automotive industry and the national government is the supply of accessible charging stations.
Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has already installed EV charging stations at three of its busiest airports; OR Tambo International, Cape Town International and King Shaka International airports have all been fitted with BMW’s ChargeNow stations in selected parking bays. OR Tambo and Cape Town both have two charging stations that can accommodate eight EVs, while King Shaka just has one charging station that can charge two EVs at the same time.
Fuel companies should include charging stations
Fuel and energy companies operating in South Africa would be remiss to ignore the trend of EVs and zero-emission transportation. They should be carefully considering including charging stations at their petrol stations nationwide, suggests First National Bank (FNB) fuel brand specialist Ronél Fester.
“The growth of the EV market should not be seen as a threat, but an opportunity for fuel service stations to sustain their businesses while diversifying revenue streams. One of the biggest challenges fuel service stations will face is increased competition with consumers no longer exclusively relying on them to keep their cars on the road. Therefore, investing in EV charging infrastructure becomes imperative for these businesses,” says Fester.
“The immediate benefit is that EV points take up to 30 minutes to completely charge a vehicle, meaning that customers will spend more time at service stations, with a potential to spend more money,” she explains. While customers wait for their EVs to charge, they are likely to sit down and order a meal or buy snacks from the petrol station’s store.
The wave of EVs is already on its way
At present, there are around 870 EVs registered in South Africa. While the country may be slightly lagging behind developed countries in terms of the adoption of EVs, fast progress is being made. The Bloomberg NEF Electric Vehicle Outlook 2019 report shows that over 2-million EVs were sold in 2018 around the world.
Experts predict that by 2025, there will be over 10-million EVs on the road. By 2040, this figure will reach 56-million. South Africa will be part of the EV revolution, so the government needs to start building the necessary infrastructure now to accommodate the rapid uptake of zero-carbon vehicles. A nationwide rollout of charging stations should be one of the priorities for the Department of Transport in the coming years.
While there are a few EV charging stations already in place across the country, only one major fuel company is currently building EV facilities at its petrol stations. The national government can partner with fuel companies to speed up the installation of charging stations nationwide, starting with major routes such as the N1, N2 and N3.
EVs can be used to power homes
An additional benefit of EVs is that their batteries can be used to power offices and homes when not in the vehicle. Some of this excess power can even be fed back into local electricity grids. Kabelo Rabotho, marketing director of Nissan South Africa says, “We can now also recycle our batteries and give them a second lease on life as energy stores for electric vehicles, homes, offices, businesses and even remote villages with a smart grid.”
“This is already taking place here, in South Africa, where ‘second-life’ Nissan Leaf batteries, together with solar panels, are being used to generate sustainable power for learners at Filadelfia Secondary School, in Soshanguve,” he illustrates. EVs can become mobile energy hubs and there is the potential to feed some of this energy back into the grid when demand is high.
“As fuel prices continue to increase, coupled with shrinking consumer disposable income, EVs will gradually become more relevant in South Africa as they typically consume less energy per kilometre and are more affordable in the long-term. In my view, this provides a compelling business case for South African fuel service stations to start investing in EV charging infrastructure,” concludes Fester.
Formex Industries is a metal forming and assembly company that supplies a variety of complex products to the local automotive industry and the export market. The company is based in the Nelson Mandela Bay metropole, South Africa’s foremost region for automotive manufacturing and export.
Formex specialises in producing components for the catalytic converter industry, as well as metal components and assemblies for the various vehicles. Formex is positioned as one of the foremost suppliers for the South African automotive industry by 2035, aligning itself with the South African Automotive Masterplan (SAAM) which takes effect in 2020.
Formex is a Level 2 B-BBEE supplier with over 80% black ownership, of which more than 40% are black women. The company is owned by Deneb Investments Limited – a subsidiary of Hosken Consolidated Investments Limited (HCI) – one of South Africa’s biggest true B-BBEE companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
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