A few days before Cop26, President Ramaphosa attended the launch of production of hybrid vehicles at the Toyota plant in Prospecton (Durban) in the province of Kwazulu-Natal. This Corolla Cross model, a hybrid SUV, already produced by seven sites around the world will be exported to around 40 African countries.
A niche vehicle, still very confidential, the Corolla Cross should be produced in 4000 units in 2022. The availability of batteries on the market is a brake on its production. The Prospecton plant is sized to best manufacture 111 Corolla Cross per day.
If this is very little for the world’s leading manufacturer, for Cyril Ramaphosa this hybrid car (both gasoline and electric) makes “an important step in the march of his country towards the transformation of the automotive industry”. The government has also launched a project with potential investors to produce more electric vehicles in the country.
With Cop26 in the sights, South Africa can green a high carbon economy. Electricity is therefore largely produced by coal-fired power stations. Cyril Ramaphosa called on international leaders to support South Africa’s efforts to “achieve our ambitious climate change targets.”
The position taken by Cyril Ramaphosa, the President of South Africa, in favor of electric cars is somewhat of a smile in a country hit by repeated power cuts.
As Eskom announces Stage 3 electricity black-outs for 3 full months, our President announces that Electric Cars are one of his priorities. You can’t make this up! https://t.co/0C0VQwyToJ
– Helen Zille (@helenzille) October 27, 2021
(At the moment when Eskom announces a level 3 restriction of the supply of electricity for 3 full months, our president announces that the electric car is one of his priorities. We cannot achieve it!)
Especially since Eskom, the national company has just announced three new days of level 3 power cuts (out of 8), starting October 28. Thus the national company will reduce the electricity supply by 4000 Mw. Customers should therefore expect 12 outages of 2 hours over these 3 days.
The level of outages amounts to 15,000 MW, ie half of the potential production. The park is aging, undersized. Eskom, the national electricity company being permanently on the verge of bankruptcy, due to the number of unpaid bills and the lack of state support.
As for the electric car, it will remain a dream for many South Africans. According to a recent study, 13% of consumers cannot pay for their auto insurance, and 25% are unable to repay their loan taken out when purchasing the vehicle.