By Our Correspondent
An electric vehicle manufacturer, Dr Sam Faleye, has identified two reasons why motorists are shifting from fuel-running vehicle to electric s (EVs).
Faleye, who is the Chief Executive Officer of SAGLEV, an electric vehicle manufacturing company, said demand for Electric Vehicles (EVs) is currently oversubscribed in Nigeria.
Speaking with newsmen, weekend in Lagos, Faleye said many people are now shifting from fuel-running vehicle to EVs because of high cost of maintenance and fueling.
He said that shifting towards EVs was unfolding due to unique challenges.
”The most efficient vehicles on sale today are proving expensive to run, given the cost of fuel and maintenance of fuel-powered vehicles.
“Presently, Electric Vehicles are one of the most viable options, as they can alleviate the stress of queuing for fuel or high maintenance cost.
”It is time to ponder on the future of EVs in Africa’s most populous black nation and largest economy.
”Around the world, countries are moving from fuel-powered vehicles to electric vehicles which have been tagged the future of transport,” he said.
Asides from dramatic reduction in fuel costs, he said EVs are more efficient, environmentally-friendly and economical, compared to their fuel and diesel-powered counterparts.
Faleye said that circumstances such as increase in price of fuel and diesel has compelled people to start shifting towards EVs.
Another reason for the gradual shift, he said, was the amount of money spent on maintenance of cars powered by fuel.
He said that when petrol became expensive, 50 per cent of Uber (an e-hailing cab company) drivers stopped their driving business because it was no longer sustainable.
”If these 50 per cent of young men and women who lost their means of livelihood were using electric vehicles, it would have solved the problem of buying fuel at a high price,” he said.
He said EVs are affordable and required less maintenance.
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”The cost of maintaining is about 60 per cent less than that of an electric vehicle versus an internal combustion engine vehicle.
Electric vehicle does not have carburettor, crankshaft and engine oil among others.
”It is just an electric motor and a battery. The parts they share in common are suspension, tyres, headlamps, rear light, shock absorbers, and brake pads.
“Also, because the EVs have less moving parts they hardly break down, hence saving cost of maintenance,” Faleye said.
On the issue of charging points, which has been another major concern, the SAGLEV boss said an EV does not need frequent charging.
He said that a fully charged car could travel for as long as 300 kilometres. He added that most EV users just needed to charge once in a week.
According to him, charging time is just four hours for an EV to fully charge.
Faleye noted that it would only cost about N4,000 PHCN units, even if the user is on Band ‘A’.
”An EV models that charged for more hours could travel for 450 to 500 kilometres.
”The worry of most Nigerians about charging is the availability of electricity and that can be solved with a generator.
”If you have a 12 KVA generator, you can charge as many EVs as you want,” Faleye said.
He also hinted that SAGLEV is installing charging points at strategic locations for EVs drivers to charge their vehicles, especially the Uber drivers.
”We are putting 50 charging points at Mega plaza and many other locations in Lagos.,” he said.
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