Why Nigeria must transit to electric vehicles – NADDC DG

Director-General of National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu, says it is important to transit from the internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs) in a bid to reduce carbon emissions in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement.

He also said electric vehicles assembled in Nigeria meet the extreme climatic conditions of the country and would serve the people in African countries better than the imported version.

He stated this in an interview with Nairametrics, an online news medium.

He said, “Carbon emissions from ICE vehicles are contributing to climate change; so electric vehicles will allow Nigeria to meet emission reduction targets faster.

“The electric vehicle allows young ICT-skilled Nigerians to explore and make the technology even better because it is basically a computer on wheels.”

The NADDC DG stated that electric vehicles are more expensive than ICE vehicles at the purchase time but considering the total cost of ownership, “which is the price you pay during the entire time of owning a product, it is much lower in an electric vehicle (EV) than in an ICE vehicle.”

He said, “You pay more initially when buying an EV, but because there are no petrol or diesel charges or maintenance charges, an electric vehicle has an edge over ICE vehicles and can be cheaper to maintain in the long run.

“Just like for ICE cars, electric car prices range from the normally-priced to the exorbitantly-priced. The NADDC is working with electric vehicle companies to provide a wide range of prices for these vehicles.”

According to Aliyu, the council is building the capacity of local auto repairers and developing National Occupational Standards (NOS) that would guide the training in electric vehicles.

“Aside from the electric drive itself, some of the components of EVs are similar to ICE vehicles; this helps in developing skills in EV maintenance,” he said.

He disclosed further that the NADDC built charging stations in three locations in Sokoto, Nsukka and Lagos to support users of electric vehicles.