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The uYilo e-Mobility Programme is a decade old this year.

The programme, aimed at enabling the ecosystem for electric mobility in South Africa, was established in March, 2013, as an initiative of the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA).

TIA is an entity of the Department of Science and Innovation.

“Investing in uYilo was an ambitious forward-thinking undertaking which has paid off for all parties involved,” says TIA acting CEO Patrick Krappie.

"As a national programme, uYilo has made significant contributions, from enterprise and skills development to wider market-enabling initiatives on policies, regulations and standards in reducing market barriers for technology uptake.

“E-mobility represents an important core pillar of the Just Energy Transition,” adds Krappie.

“Through continued investments in uYilo, TIA is committed to supporting the growth of this industry,” he says.

“There have been many developments and great strides that have taken place in the past decade,” notes uYilo director Hiten Parmar.

"Much of the advancement and development of this fast-evolving industry has taken place behind the scenes.

“The groundwork in both the private and public sectors has required consultation and knowledge development on every level, in order to lay the foundation for this diverse industry that will affect and inform our lives for generations to come.”

In this past decade, uYilo has established an accredited battery testing laboratory, provided materials testing and characterisation services, and created a live testing environment for electric vehicles within the smart grid ecosystem, notes Parmar.

“We have also provided opportunities for more than 45 interns over this period, providing them in-service industry training.

“Another highlight is the annual uYilo Kick Start Fund which focuses on growing local products and services in the e-mobility space towards their commercialisation.

“A vital aspect of the transition to e-mobility is establishing local competence, expertise and industry so that we are not solely reliant on imports,” says Parmar.

These locally manufactured products and services must also find acceptance in international markets.

“South Africa cannot be an exporter of raw materials and an importer of finished product. In order to boost local employment and investment, we need to encourage and enable local industry, creating our own e-mobility ecosystem,” says Parmar.

Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Barbara Creecy has granted Eskom exemption that will enable it to operate temporary stacks at the Kusile power station, in Mpumalanga, for 13 months without using the flue-gas delsuphurisation (FGD) mechanism.

The exemption, which was granted on March 14, has not been extended in terms of the newly published State of Disaster regulations as requested by Eskom, but rather in line with Section 59 of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act (NEMAQA), and includes several conditions.

The decision exempted Eskom from what would have otherwise been a lengthy process of amending its Atmospheric Emission Licence and Creecy said it was granted in the interests of alleviating the country’s electricity crisis.

Currently only one of Kusile’s four operating units is in service, after the Unit 1 flue duct collapsed on October 23 due to a build-up of slurry. The collapse also compromised the unit 2 and 3 flue ducts, which share a chimney with the Unit 1 flue.

The three units, which are able to produce 2 160 MW of electricity, have been inoperable ever since, adding about two stages of loadshedding every time Eskom implements rotational cuts.

A full repair of the damaged west stack, in which the three damaged flues are housed, is expected only in December 2024.

“Eskom’s request pertains to a temporary solution to restore lost generation capacity at its Kusile power station while a damaged stack undergoes repairs which are due for completion in December 2024.

“In the interim, Eskom plans to construct the temporary stacks by November 2023, which it anticipates will allow the resumption of generation capacity of 2 100 MW which will reduce the country’s exposure to loadshedding by two levels,” Creecy said in a statement, stressing that she was aware of the well-documented socio-economic impacts of loadshedding.

Eskom would need to apply to the National Air Quality Officer for a one-off postponement of the compliance timeframes for minimum emission standards for new plants.

This one-off postponement of the compliance timeframes for minimum emission standards for new plants would be valid until March 31, 2025.

The exemption granted in terms of Section 59(1) of NEMAQA was subject to the following conditions:

Eskom must issue a public notice in two national newspapers explaining reasons for the application;

Eskom must conduct a public participation process subject to a curtailed timeframe of 14 days;

Eskom must account to Creecy and the Portfolio Committee on Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment in the National Assembly on the progress of its repair to the west stack; and

Eskom must undertake measures to mitigate against the exposure of its employees and surrounding communities to harm emissions which, at a minimum, must include independent health screenings and referral to appropriate public health facilities for treatment where necessary.

Creecy acknowledged that bypassing the FGD system would likely result in increased sulphur dioxide emissions during the 13-month period and would exceed the current applicable limit contained in Kusile’s Atmospheric Emission Licence.

“I am equally aware of the health and associated impacts of exposure to sulphur dioxide emissions, particularly on communities in close proximity to coal-fired power stations.

“In the light of the competing factors, I have been called on to make an extraordinarily difficult decision,” the Minister said in a statement.

Even before being ranted the exemption, Eskom appointed Concor as the main contractor for the temporary stacks, with installation subject to approval by the Minister.

Eskom’s current plan is for the first unit, using temporary stacks, to be returned to service eight months after the environmental exemption was secured, with the second and third units following in one-month intervals thereafter.

A new €15-million initiative has been launched to provide research and technical support for “catalytic” just transition projects in South Africa’s Mpumalanga province, currently the centre of South Africa’s coal industry and where 22 GW of coal-fired power capacity is scheduled for retirement before 2035.

Dubbed Just SA, the ‘Just Transition to a Decarbonised Economy for South Africa’ project is being funded by the German government’s International Climate Initiative and will be implemented over a five-year period.

The project’s political partner is South Africa’s Department of Fisheries, Forestry and the Environment and Minister Barbara Creecy attended its official launch in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

Speaking at the event, Creecy indicated that Just SA was aligned with the $8.5-billion Just Energy Transition Partnership (JET-P) that the country had concluded with Germany, France, the European Union, the UK and the US and would assist in identifying “transition pathways in the province of Mpumalanga”.

She argued that climate justice had to involve affected workers and communities from the outset and also had to ensure that those most vulnerable to the transition were direct beneficiaries of the transition projects.

There was also growing pressure on South Africa, she acknowledged, to demonstrate visible progress on its JET-P, which was the first such partnership to be concluded globally, given that similar climate finance partnerships had since been struck with Indonesia and Vietnam.

“Having met with some of the officials involved in the Indonesia partnership, it has made me realise that South Africa has to get its act together and get its act together quickly, because now there's going to be competition for international financing,” Creecy said, indicating that South Africa needed to attract $98-billion in transition-related investment over the coming five years to support its energy transition and to tackle debilitating loadshedding.

German Ambassador to South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini, Andreas Peschke, said the transition of South Africa’s energy system presented an opportunity for job creation not only in the renewable-energy field but also for alternative livelihoods in tourism, agriculture and the rehabilitation of Mpumalanga’s natural resources.

“The transition towards more modern sources of energy may also help, in my opinion, to ease the current energy crisis.

“In fact, it may be not only the most sustainable, but maybe also the fastest way to bring new energy to the grid,” Peschke said in a speech, during which he addressed the audience in both English and isiZulu.

Just SA project director Navina Sanchez, of German development agency GIZ, said the projects would be implemented in a consortium with six South African partners, including the Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agency, GreenCape, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies, the National Business Initiative, the Youth Employment Service and WWF.

“The project will provide targeted regional and local support to Mpumalanga . . . and focuses also on catalysing and unlocking more infrastructure and economic development in the province and will work with local communities,” Sanchez explained.

Mpumalanga Green Cluster CEO Nkosinathi Nkonyane indicated that he saw immediate opportunity to catalyse increase agricultural activity in the province, which was already one of the country’s “bread baskets”, as well as to attract wind and solar investment on the back of Mpumalanga’s existing grid infrastructure.

While access to grid infrastructure had emerged as a significant constraint to integrating new renewables generation in the Cape provinces, it is estimate that Mpumalanga has about 5.5 GW of available grid capacity.

It is likely that the next public renewables procurement bid window will direct bidders to areas with residual grid capacity, including Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Gauteng, North West and the Free State.

Stellantis last week signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the South African government’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) to develop a manufacturing facility in the country.

Stellantis South Africa (SA) tells Engineering News Online that the MoU was signed by the three parties with the aim “to work together towards finalising a Stellantis local vehicle assembly plant solution for the local and export markets”.

“The current three-way MoU is to develop a solution at which stage a review by all parties on their involvement and/or investments will be decided and shared.”

For the IDC, the outcome of the business case will “largely inform” its decision on the nature of its potential investment in the operation in terms of “the quantum and equity consideration”.

The IDC is currently also a shareholder in the BAIC assembly plant in the Eastern Cape.

Stellantis sells the Jeep, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Citroën, Opel and Peugeot brands in South Africa.

The company says it is currently reviewing various options in terms of the brands and models that would be most suited for production in South Africa, with the export market a key element of the localisation and business plan.

“More details will be communicated at a further stage.”

This is also true for the specific special economic zone currently under consideration for the location of the fully-built-up vehicle plant, as well as the anticipated yearly production volume.

Initially, only the production of internal combustion engine variants will be considered, says Stellantis.

“But with the relevant government support frameworks in place, there is no reason why future plans wouldn’t include new-energy vehicles, in which Stellantis is one of the global leaders.”

The target for first vehicle production is 2026, but Stellantis cautions that this is dependent on many variables.

“South Africa, with its advanced infrastructure, diverse economy, sophisticated capital markets, and developed manufacturing capacity, is the ideal location for any company aspiring to reach the continental market more effectively, both from a cost and logistical point of view,” Stellantis tells Engineering News Online.

“Regional production capacity will enable Stellantis' sales and market share ambitions for the Middle East and Africa.

“The manufacturing site in South Africa will be a new building block in our industrialisation strategy that includes the plan to sell one-million vehicles in the region by 2030, and will bring us closer to our customers’ needs in the region.”

But what about the energy shortages currently plaguing South Africa?

Stellantis says the business details being finalised between the MoU partners include discussions on energy, and “the challenges and changes ahead”.

“Options such as alternative green energy solutions, in line with planned standard operating procedures, form part of the discussions to mitigate the current problems being faced in the country.”

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel reports that an energy one-stop shop to speed up the regulatory processes required for private investment in electricity generation has been established and is being managed by InvestSA.

In a presentation to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry, Patel reported that the one-stop shop had been established in line with the Energy Action Plan (EAP) to tackle loadshedding, which has since been declared a state of disaster.

“The one-stop shop will assist power-generating companies navigate the different processes that apply in law and increase turnaround times by assisting investors to submit applications through a single-window process to obtain all necessary government approvals,” Patel reported.

Some of the department’s staff had already been redeployed to the one-stop shop and further recruitments would be made from outside of the department after the start of the new financial year on April 1.

“Unblocking teams” were also currently being assembled to assist potential investors speed up their projects.

Cutting red tape and accelerating regulatory processes has been highlighted as urgent by the National Energy Crisis Committee that has been set up to implement the EAP, which focuses on supporting a recovery in the performance of the Eskom coal fleet and adding new non-Eskom generation.

Patel reported that moves to hasten regulatory approvals was one of eight actions being undertaken by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) to support the EAP, with the other seven including:

Increasing private investment in generation, primarily through the extension of development finance from the Industrial Development Corporation, which had already supported 24 renewables projects with a combined capacity of 953 MW and had a potential project pipeline (comprising both publicly and privately procured projects) involving more than 8 000 MW;

Introducing “regulatory flexibility” on transformation by providing independent power producers with a “customised” black economic empowerment scorecard that takes account of the “unique characteristics of electricity projects”;

Providing “regulatory flexibility” on competition laws, with the Competition Commission having released draft regulations for public comment that would extend block exemptions to both suppliers and consumers of electricity to allow for collaboration without infringing on South Africa’s competition legislation;

Establishing a R1.3-billion Energy Resilience Scheme, which will provide blended finance to support companies affected by loadshedding, as well as grant financing for township and rural enterprises aiming to invest in solar back-up solutions;

Developing, through the South African Bureau of Standards, various energy efficiency standards for technologies that can help reduce consumption;

Ramping up monitoring of potential price gouging and price fixing on key energy components, including solar panels, inverters and batteries; and

Supporting the industrialisation of energy components by attracting and incentivising manufacturing investments.

“The eight actions outlined constitute a major new focus for the DTIC-group.

“It requires a ‘retooling’ of the department and its entities, with shifts of staff and resources from originally-budgeted areas to the expanding work in managing the energy challenges,” Patel told lawmakers.

Catalytic converters, engine parts, engines, clutches/shaft couplings, silencers/exhausts and ignitions/starting equipment are the component groupings most at risk from the global move to electric vehicles (EVs), as they are not required in these types of vehicles, says National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (Naacam) executive director Renai Moothilal.

Other components also at risk are transmission shafts/cranks and gearboxes, he adds.

These components are also not required within EVs, but their manufacturers’ existing capabilities offer them the opportunity to pivot and join the EV supply chain.

In 2021, automotive component exports from South Africa increased by 27% to a record R69.2-billion, up from R54.5-billion in 2020.

Catalytic converters, at R35-billion, comprised 50.4% of total automotive component exports, followed by engine parts, tyres and engines as the biggest categories.

In total, the yearly South African component exports at risk amounts to R66-billion, says Moothilal.

In terms of job opportunities, around 17 500 jobs are at risk within the South African components sector, he notes. This excludes employment related to engines, as this is done in-house by two vehicle manufacturers.

The risk to component makers in terms of the EV evolution is divided into three categories.

High risk is where a company’s core business is to become obsolete; medium risk is where the core business will become obsolete, but there are opportunities to pivot within the operation; and low risk, where the company has a diversified product portfolio, with only one portfolio to become obsolete.

“However, it is important to note that the impacts of the phasing out of internal combustion engines (ICEs) are unlikely to be linear and immediate,” emphasises Moothilal.

The global phasing out of ICE vehicles in the short and medium term will not completely eliminate hybrid and plug-in hybrids, both of which require many similar components as ICEs, he notes.

“People often ask if SA is ready for NEVs – what does it mean for component manufacturers? Are we going to fall off a cliff?

“Actually not. Component manufacturers in South Africa have typically responded to technology changes every time there is a new model or a facelift is to be produced,” says Moothilal.

“We already have companies in South Africa exporting into global EV platforms, such as the F150 Lightning platform in the US. That should tell you that EV technology has already found its way into the South African component space.”

The exporter to the US is a locally owned foundry and forge business exporting wheel hubs.

Another manufacturer moving into the EV space is a producer of processed raw materials which has a large export contract with a vehicle manufacturer for the supply of components into their EV range.

A third example is a fuel-cell and electrolyser component manufacturing facility that is currently being established to produce membrane electrode assemblies containing platinum-group metals.

Moothilal says it is also important to remember that a large cohort of Naacam members are multinational companies whose sister plants across the world are already producing components for new-energy vehicles (NEVs – hybrids and EVs included).

This means that they have NEV-specific research and development that can be readily shared with their local subsidiaries as and when required.

When Naacam members were asked in a recent survey what they believe to be the most important enabling factors to transition to component production for NEVs, they ranked technology incentives and capital incentives from government, as well as demand certainty from vehicle manufacturers as the two most important criteria.

Moothilal spoke at an EV conference held in Cape Town last week.

South Africans can now make free real-time payments of up to R3 000 between bank accounts using the PayShap free payment system introduced by regulator the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) and the financial services industry.

The new PayShap real-time payment service enables users to pay or send money to a user's identifier or to the user's mobile number, with the money being reflected in the person's or business' account within ten seconds, said participating financial services firms at the launch event on March 13.

The aim of the real-time digital payments service is to replace the use of cash in daily life, such as to buy snacks from an informal vendor or to pay for transportation, explained financial infrastructure and payment clearing company BankservAfrica head of real-time payments Mpho Sadiki.

Cash remains preferred and dominant in certain settings, including in microenterprises, informal trade and rural areas, said SARB deputy governor and Prudential Authority CEO Fundi Tshazibana.

“Small business owners often talk about the certainty owing to using cash for transactions and the expense of using other payment platforms. However, there are also risks and costs of using and holding cash,” she said.

With PayShap, people will be able to make cash-like payments that the recipient can verify is in his or her account before the customer leaves, she explained.

HOW IT WORKS

PayShap is an additional payment option for people with bank accounts. PayShap will be automatically accessible through bank channels, such as mobile banking and Internet banking.

PayShap is currently only available for people with accounts at financial services firms Absa, FNB, Standard Bank and Nedbank, although Capitec, Investec, Discovery Bank, Sasfin, Standard Chartered and TymeBank will be added to the ecosystem in the coming months, noted BankservAfrica CEO Jan Pilbauer.

The first phase includes the PayShap instant clearing feature. This provides the option to pay-by-account using account details, or to pay-by-proxy, which uses a unique identifier, called a ShapID, such as a cellphone number.

The second phase will introduce an additional request-to-pay function, which will make it possible for a person to initiate a request for payment and receive money securely and immediately in their bank account, explained Sadiki.

“While the focus at launch is on person-to-person payments, every South African, including small business owners and merchants to commercial businesses, stand to benefit from this service as a viable alternative to cash, whether reimbursing friends or family, or paying for items on community marketplaces, hair salons, home maintenance services, car washes, restaurants and transportation,” says Sadiki.

Further, banks' instant payment services will remain, as these are generally used for values higher than R3 000, explained Standard Bank South Africa head of payments Rufaida Banoonhai.

“The goal of the SARB's Vision 2025 national payment system framework and strategy is to develop a safer, faster, more inclusive and cost-effective payments system. Today marks a milestone on this journey and is part of the industry's response to the SARB's Visions 2025,” said Tshazibana.

All the participating stakeholders, including members of industry organisation the Payments Association of South Africa, co-created the service levels that each must adhere to when providing the PayShap service because the user experience is critical to get right to improve adoption and use, emphasised Sadiki.

“Participating financial firms and stakeholders agreed to a three-step process to build the innovative payment system, which is open, tap and pay. Intuitive use, ease of use and real-time verification of transfers are important if we are to truly have a positive impact on a person who relies on cash,” he said.

BANK BENEFITS

Banks generally do not have much visibility into the use of cash in microenterprises and informal trade, as people or business owners general...

The Urology Hospital, in Pretoria, has celebrated 3 500 procedures done with its Da Vinci robot, having been the first hospital to acquire this surgical robot in South Africa in 2013.

The hospital recently acquired the latest Gen 4 X model in the Da Vinci robot range, replacing the Gen 3 predecessor.

Particularly, urologists and surgeons Dr Lance Coetzee, Dr Dirk Ligthelm and others use the robot to assist with prostatectomy surgeries, which has become a standard of care for patients undergoing prostate cancer-related surgery.

Ligthelm comments that robotic technology is constantly evolving and changing the face of prostate cancer treatment in South Africa. Particularly, the fourth generation Da Vinci robot, which is manufactured by US-based surgical equipment manufacturer Intuitive, provides improved magnification and greater precision during robotic prostatectomies and partial nephrectomies.

The robots allow for ease of work in smaller areas and are much less intrusive to patients, leaving them with a shorter recovery time compared with conventional open surgery, Coetzee tells Engineering News during a media tour of the machine.

He adds that robotic-assisted prostate surgery also reduces levels of post-operative side effects, such as incontinence and impotence, and ensures less blood loss and lowered risks of infection.

The procedures done robotically at the urology hospital include cancerous prostate removals, cancerous kidney removals, reconstructive kidney surgery and pelvic organ prolapse treatment surgery.

Globally, more than 12-million procedures using the Da Vinci robots have been performed. More than 70 countries globally have embraced the minimally invasive Da Vinci systems.

The 900 kg fourth-generation Da Vinci robot comprises four arms, each able to move independently and with grape-peeling precision.

Medhold, which is the South African distributor for Intuitive, field service engineer Marie Steenkamp says there are two more Da Vinci robots operating at hospitals in Gauteng, two in Port Elizabeth and four in Cape Town.

The Da Vinci Robotic systems retail for between $1.5-million and $2-million depending on model. The Urology Hospital had purchased the X system for performing robotics-assisted surgery in line with international trends for best patient outcomes

Coetzee explains surgeons undergo rigorous training before performing operations with the Da Vinci robot.

Steenkamp explains the machine is able to detect potential faults or errors on its own, and warn the operator before the machine starts operating, or even during operations, without causing any harm to the patient.

The robots also have their own backup power supply for removal of the arms from a patient, should the main power supply, as well as the hospital’s backup power supply, fail to be available.

Coetzee and Steenkamp both hope that more surgeons will embrace this technology and have more hospitals perform these non-invasive procedures.

Standard Bank says it is at the ready to support renewable energy and infrastructure projects.

The bank, which this week delivered record 37%-higher headline 2022 earnings of R34.2-billion and paid the highest dividend in its 161-year history, expresses the view that meaningful structural reform and an improvement in the electricity supply in South Africa could lift confidence and accelerate economic growth, job creation and social upliftment.

The bank, headed by CEO Sim Tshabalala, says its 2023 balance sheet growth – particularly from renewables and infrastructure, combined with higher average interest rates – should support low-teen net interest income growth year on year.

The Gauteng provincial government reports that at least 1 500 ha of the land that precious and green metals mining company Sibanye-Stillwater has donated to it are earmarked for the development of a solar power farm to ease Gauteng’s energy crisis.

The process of allocating land parcels to independent power producers will be completed in March, Business Day quotes Gauteng Finance MEC Jacob Mamabolo as saying.

The solar farm will reportedly benefit from R1.2-billion in seed capital set aside by the provincial government to fund projects that are shovel-ready and can contribute to ending loadshedding in the province.

On the horizon is engagement with local authorities to receive the solar power generated.

Renewables are described by Scatec sub-Saharan Africa VP Jan Fourie as presenting the optimal solution to South Africa’s energy woes, with the urgency of the situation calling for increased private sector investment to fast-track the Department of Mineral and Energy Resources' Integrated Resource Plan and accelerate economic recovery.

After reaching financial close in July 2022, Scatec started construction of the three Kenhardt projects totalling 540 MW solar and 225 MW/1 140 MWh battery storage. Kenhardt is a small town in the Northern Cape, about 120 km from Upington.

Fourie sees widespread investment in renewables being driven by strong tailwinds and offering businesses far more than a safety net against loadshedding.

"Embracing renewables is a key component of many successful businesses' corporate social responsibility strategies, and tends to herald strengthened stakeholder relations, including with the local community, customers and employees," he says, adding that new energy wheeling legislation and power purchase agreements are alleviating energy-mix pressures.

Harnessing South Africa’s abundant sun and wind resources could, he emphasises, hold the key to future-proofing this country’s energy sector.

Fourie urges the private sector to shift gears in staking their claim in a cleaner, more sustainable future through significant renewables buy-in.

South Africa’s mining industry is leading the move by the private sector into renewables. The mining industry has 89 energy projects by 29 companies for 6.5 GW of renewable electricity at a project value exceeding R100-billion, Minerals Council South Africa states in its latest Facts and Figures Pocketbook 2022.

Renewable energy’s big plus is that its sunlight and wind sources are constantly being replenished.

Global investments in energy transition technologies – including energy efficiency technologies – reached $1.3-trillion in 2022, a report published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) and Climate Policy Initiative shows.

This figure was a new record high, up 19% from 2021 investment levels and 50% higher compared with investment levels before the pandemic in 2019.

Although global investments in renewable energy reached a record high of $500-billion in 2022, this figure still represents less than 40% of the average investments needed each year between 2021 and 2030, according to Irena’s 1.5 ºC scenario.

Investments are also not on track to achieve the goals set under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the report notes.

Quoting independent sources such as Climate Action Trac...

AutoTrader’s newest Hybrid Car Buyers Survey and Electric Vehicle (EV) Car Buyers Survey show that brand ranks very low in importance among potential buyers of EVs and hybrids.

The digital marketplace’s CEO, George Mienie, says respondents indicated that safety, fuel efficiency and price were the most important factors when buying a hybrid, with the manufacturer ranked second to last.

When it comes to EVs, battery efficiency, safety and price ranked first through to third, with brand again the second-to-last consideration.

This means that the top vehicle brands in the country could potentially “get disrupted” by the arrival of new-technology vehicles, says Mienie.

“Brands is one of the lowest factors. Consumers seem to think that hybrids or EVs are such solid, simple technology that it does not matter which brand you buy.”

Mienie adds that the hybrid survey shows that 81% of South Africans underestimate the range of a hybrid.

“The Toyota Corolla Cross hybrid can do more than 900 km on a full tank of fuel, and consumers totally underestimate that. So there needs to be a massive education drive, even when it comes to hybrids.”

Standard hybrids, such as the Corolla Cross, are viewed as the more accessible of lower-emission new-energy vehicles (NEVs) coming to the market, as they do not need to be plugged in to charge, as is the case with plug-in hybrids and EVs.

Mienie says another factor local vehicle manufacturers also need to consider is that consumers are not buying NEVs to “save the environment, primarily”, but “for their context, their circumstances”.

“The data is telling us that.”

According to Mienie, the factors that will sway South Africans from internal combustion engines to NEVs are a quick fill-up/charge; long range; and a price point of under R500 000, long before the environment comes into play.

He notes that the newest EV survey shows that 64% of consumers will purchase an EV within the next five years, down from 72% in 2021, and 74% in 2020.

One of the reasons for this drop could be the fact that hybrids are currently ticking all three of the boxes consumers are considering the most important, especially with the launch of the Toyota Corolla Cross hybrid priced at under R500 000.

Mienie also notes that while 32% of respondents have experienced a hybrid, only 2% have experienced an EV.

The reporting period for the hybrid study covers AutoTrader data for the 2022 calendar year, with more than 14 hybrid brands and 40 models being considered, as well as a dedicated consumer survey, which was conducted in the last quarter of last year.

Statistics released by Naamsa | The Automotive Business Council earlier this year, show that domestic sales of NEVs increased by 431.7% in 2022.

However, at 4 764 units, this represented only 0.88% of the country’s total new-vehicle market for the year.

According to Naamsa, 502 EVs were registered in South Africa in 2022, up from 218 units in 2021.

Only 122 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles were sold in 2022.

Traditional hybrid vehicle sales reached 4 050 units for the year.