Get ready for electric taxis in SA

Electrified fleets within logistics is quietly moving along and, in parts of the Western Cape, is being tested as public transport.

More than a year ago, Cape Town’s oldest bus company, the Golden Arrow Bus Service (GABS), introduced two electric busses with more than 300km of range to its fleet, a first for SA. In addition to investing in rooftop solar in 2017 and subsequently exporting electricity to the city, it plans to introduce 60 locally built electric busses in 2024.

And not too far away in Stellenbosch, GoMetro has been appointed project lead for testing electric minibus taxis.

GoMetro CEO Justin Coetzee said it is importing and homologating the first electric minibus taxi that will comply with South African public transport regulations. It will be tested for local conditions soon.

“This is a statement project where we are bringing an EV that we have never seen before for a vehicle mode that we are all familiar with and has the potential to flip the EV narrative on its head. This is not a middle-class or EU issue; this is a globally driven and locally relevant opportunity,” said Coetzee.

Minibus taxi owners are business owners, and they are sensitive to the price of diesel, said Coetzee. “Owners are open to new technologies to reduce running costs, drivers do not mind either technology and association leadership wants to be part of the taxi value chain.

“National, provincial and local governments have all been very supportive of this pilot and the pathway it could create,” he said.

“What is interesting in the South African model is that it is likely to be led by the private sector — the taxi industry — and government is likely to play a smaller role than what is normally the case in other markets, where the city or state runs all public transport, with very little informal activity.”

Meanwhile in Gauteng, “electric vehicles as a service” and “charging as a service” is taking off.

AEVERSA’s CaaS solution allows the electrification of fleets without the upfront investment and burden of ownership and maintenance. It focuses on phasing out combustion vehicles for commercial EVs, AC and DC charging infrastructure, renewable and solar infrastructure, and commercial battery storage.

Reando Potgieter, COO at AEVERSA, said it is vital to ensure the smooth running of any EV fleet and it facilitates the management of electrical energy supply, which ultimately affects the cost of ownership of a logistics fleet. “It is the only way to guarantee uptime and ensure vehicles are ready to go when they need to.”

The company sees its challenges — market education and perception conversion — as opportunities. It aims to assist some of SA's largest fleets to lay the groundwork for gradual EV adoption and get vehicles working in as many fleets as possible.

Similarly, Everlectric said its EV as a service model overcomes industry challenges associated with electric vehicle adoption as the solution seeks to address limitations by providing all elements as a packaged solution.

Ndia Magadagela, CEO of Everlectric said: “To date there have not been many solutions in the market that assist the sector in the adoption of electric mobility due to limitations that exist in SA, such as lack of EV availability, infrastructure limitations, grid stability due to load-shedding and prohibitive costs.”

Everlectric customers receive fully maintained and insured EVs, charging infrastructure and green electricity in an easy-to-adopt alternative to their existing ICE fleets. 

The company is rolling out charging infrastructure alongside clients' needs and will be able to meet demand. It also makes use of existing infrastructure rolled out by other suppliers, which will grow from Gauteng into KZN and the Western Cape. 

It imports the Maxus EV 30 one-tonne panel vans, but Magadagela said excessive import duties and lack of legislated tax and other government incentives are a challenge. “They make transitioning to electric mobility difficult for many South Africans. 

“Everlectric’s goal is to incorporate locally manufactured or assembled components into the value chain as far as possible. EV-specific localisation options are very limited as South Africa is viewed as an uncompetitive market for EVs and its associated industries compared with many other global markets,” says Magadagela.