Nigeria approved tax waivers for nearly 4 000 electric vehicles (EVs) in the first half of this year, government data showed, as authorities push to accelerate nascent EV adoption despite chronic electricity shortages.
The approvals reviewed by Reuters are the first under a new government programme aimed at promoting cleaner transport through tax incentives and local assembly programmes.
Nigeria's government is aiming to significantly ramp up electric vehicle uptake, with its 2022 Energy Transition Plan projecting that EVs will make up 60% of its vehicle fleet by 2050.
That would be a huge increase from current levels. While official data is not available, EVs now likely account for less than 1% of the total vehicle fleet in Africa's most populous country, dealers say, equivalent to only a few tens of thousands of vehicles on its roads.
NIGERIA'S POWER SECTOR STRUGGLES TO KEEP UP WITH DEMAND
