Electric Cars in Nigeria - Facts You Must Know before You Buy

An electric vehicle is an automobile that has an electric motor instead of an internal combustion engine, it is propelled by one or two electric motors, and its source of energy is generated from a large traction battery pack installed in the vehicle to power the electric motor. 

These cars have a charging outlet and must be plugged into a wall outlet or charging station which can be installed in the house or public areas. This article will tell you about electric cars in Nigeria, and what you must know about these vehicles as it relates to your environment.

How Long Can the Electric Vehicles Travel on a Full Charge

In these contemporary times, all-electric vehicles have a shorter range when fully charged than when compared with fuel-based vehicles. Although considering the increasing range of new models and the continuous development of high-powered charging equipment and stations the gap will surely decline.

In general terms, electric cars can travel between 150-300 miles on a full charge of about 4-6 hours, which should be more than enough for both drivers who travel within the city and people who cover long distances daily for work.

Electric vehicles over the Rise in Fuel Price 

One of the whooping advantages that electric vehicles have over fuel vehicles is that daily extra expenses on fuel, which is no longer encouraging as the price of fuel rise from  180NGN to 260NGN depending on individual states where you are buying from. The question is can these electric cars in Nigeria survive despite the country's challenges, considering certain advantages and disadvantages in the country's system? 

Advantages of an Electric Vehicle

 1. No Fuel: Instead of using fuel, electric vehicles are entirely powered by a lengthy chain of rechargeable batteries that just need to be charged. The rising cost of fuel makes electric vehicles more cost-effective to operate because you never have to purchase fuel for your automobile.

2. Cost Effective: An electric vehicle is much less expensive to maintain than a fuel-powered vehicle. Since motors are used to power everything.

3. No Noise Pollution: Unlike fuel-powered vehicles, electric cars create less noise. The motors can deliver an efficient drive with greater acceleration over long ranges.

4. No exhaust Emissions: Electric vehicle does not emit exhaust from a tailpipe and doesn't contain conventional fuel components, such as a fuel pump, fuel line, or fuel tank. They are better than hybrid Vehicles because they run on fuel and produce Emissions.

5. Driving an electric vehicle is safe: Since they go through the same testing and fitness requirements as other vehicles powered by petroleum. One may anticipate that in the event of a collision, airbags will deploy and the battery's power supply will be cut off. You could avoid suffering significant injuries, as well as those of the other car occupants.

6. Rise in Demand: with the new trend of this vehicle, people are showing interest and this has led to high market demand, a variety of choices, and has gained popularity.

 

Disadvantages of Electric Vehicles
you have to consider some disadvantages of electric cars in Nigeria to know how suitable they may be for you before investing in them.

1. Inadequate Charging Station: since Electric Vehicle is a new trend, there are not a lot of charging station where one can power up the batteries. Therefore if you are on a long drive and run out of power you may end up being stocked in a place without a charging station.

2. High Electricity Bill: Electric cars depend on the electric supply in order to fully charge. This will certainly reflect on your bills per month since they take a long time about 4-6 hours to fully charge. Therefore you should also consider your supply source before considering buying an Electric Car.

3. Takes Time to Charge: Due to a long time it takes to charge one may not be patient enough to wait especially when there is an emergency. Unlike fuel cars that just take a few minutes to get fuelled at the station, Electric vehicles take longer time to charge.

4. Battery Lifetime: Electric vehicle depends fully on these batteries to supply power, therefore may wear out after much charging and usage. Some battery lifetime may be between 3-10 years based on the quality and usage as well.

5. Mileage: Some of these cars can only cover a short mile on a full charge like about 50-100 miles while some can go as long as 150-300 miles. You wouldn't want to get stocked on the way, therefore you must consider the mileage before investing. Notwithstanding there are already future improvements.

6. Lack of Energy Supply: It is not suitable in countries that don't have a constant electricity supply. This is because it depends on electricity to charge and when there is a power shortage, it becomes a huge limitation.

7. Affordability: Due to the technology involved in the production of electric vehicles the cost of acquiring is quite high. Though with new modern discoveries in technology, we are hopeful that the cost may drop with time.

In Conclusion

There has been a huge improvement from when the first electric car was developed in 1837 till now. Majorly on technology and people’s behavior on the impact of automobiles in our environment.

Currently, EVs are a lucrative business to invest in for both companies and individuals who wish to go into sales. Nevertheless, there are a few challenges that must be tackled before these vehicles can be considered manufactured locally in great quantity.

Also, the production of quality batteries is quite expensive, and to overcome these challenges, the Nigerian government will have to subsidize this and advance in technology. The question is; will the Nigerian government encourage the production of electric cars in Nigeria when fully aware it will dwindle the consumption of crude oil?