Nairobi-based EV distributor, MojaEV Kenya, has announced plans to start assembling its electric vehicles locally from August according to Bloomberg. At the moment, MojaEV imports fully built units from China.
Initially, the company plans to assemble the vehicles at Mombasa-based Associated Vehicle Assemblers Ltd. before building its own factory that will also put together battery and solar components. With the factory in Kenya, MojaEV will be able to export its vehicles to several African Markets.
“We have contracts in place. All the original equipment manufacturers are in agreement with us, they will give us the expertise we need to build the factory,” said Erick Lumallas, an aide to MojaEV’s chief executive officer.
According to Lumallas, MojaEV is opening up an assembly plant in Kenya to avoid the taxes Kenya charges for imports. Kenya charges 35% import duty, 20% excise tax, 1.5% for a railway development levy, a fuel levy of 2.5% and value added tax at 16% for imports. These charges are passed down to the end consumer, affecting the final price. The company’s entry-level units start at Ksh 2.5 million which should come down once it starts assembling the cars in Kenya.
The company targets to produce up to 300 vehicles every month and projects its sales to reach 1,500 units annually. There is an increased appetite for EVs in Kenya, so if priced right, this can be achieved.
MojaEV was launched by Chinese investors last year and is exporting to Tanzania, and plans to expand distribution to Rwanda, Uganda, Mauritius, Ghana, Nigerian, Botswana and Zambia. Some of its brands include SUV brands Skyworth and Neta, the sedan category has GSE and Wuling, double cabin pick up Riddara, and Foton buses and trucks.
Charging EVs still presents a challenge and to address this, every EV distributed by MojaEV comes with a charger that can be plugged into any wall socket.
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