chinese brands take the top spot in nepal's electric vehicle market
2024-08-31
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the picture shows the newly released byd seal 06gt.
on august 27, nepal's largest auto show, the 2024 nepal national automobile dealers association auto show, opened in kathmandu. among them, electric vehicles became the most eye-catching category of the show.
the latest data from nepal customs show that in the 2023-2024 fiscal year ending mid-july, nepal imported more than 11,000 electric vehicles, of which about 8,000 were from china, accounting for about 70% of its total imports.
nepal, as a mountainous country, has abundant hydropower resources and great potential for developing electric vehicles. the government has set a goal of electric vehicles accounting for 25% of private passenger car sales by 2025. china is a world leader in electric vehicle technology, and promoting electric vehicles in nepal will help nepal achieve energy transformation.
imports from china increased 35 times in 5 years
in recent years, china has accelerated the development of the electric vehicle industry, showing obvious scale advantages. in 2023, china has become the world's largest electric vehicle producer and consumer market. with its advantages in electrification and intelligence, chinese electric vehicles have been recognized by consumers in many parts of the world.
nepal's ministry of industry recently stated that china's electric vehicles are technologically advanced and there is broad room for cooperation between the two sides, and that it is willing to import and sell more chinese electric vehicles. as demand for electric vehicles in nepal increases, several chinese investors have applied to open electric vehicle assembly plants in kathmandu and the adjacent kabre district.
according to local media reports, this year, china's xiamen jinlong auto body co., ltd. will invest 3 billion nepalese rupees (100 nepalese rupees is about 5.34 yuan) to build an electric vehicle assembly plant in nepal. tikaram puri, chairman of the nepalese cooperative company, said that it plans to produce more than 5,000 electric vehicles per year, and "the technology and equipment will be imported from china."
a few years ago, nepal's electric vehicle market was dominated by korean brands hyundai and kia. between 2020 and 2022, india's electric vehicle industry gained momentum, and its largest electric vehicle manufacturer tata motors changed the local market landscape by launching the compact suv model tata nexon, surpassing korean brands to become the first. however, starting in 2022, chinese electric vehicle brands have been catching up, and chinese brands such as byd and mg have gradually secured the top spot in nepal's imported electric vehicle market through excellent technology, performance, competitive prices and a wide range of models.
the auto show will feature chinese brands including byd, changan deep blue, skyworth, dongfeng, chery ou mengda, nezha, mg and great wall. according to the organizers, more than 50 auto brands will participate in the show.
in the past five years, the number of electric vehicles imported by nepal from china has increased 35 times. akash gorcha, senior vice president of the nepal automobile dealers association, said, "the continued economic slowdown has not prevented nepalese people from buying electric vehicles." on may 18 alone, byd's dealership center in kathmandu delivered 50 electric vehicles. according to byd's local person in charge, electric vehicles priced between 4 million nepalese rupees and 5.5 million nepalese rupees have a large customer base. byd atto3 and dolphin are the most popular models among nepalese customers.
nigerian government encourages people to buy electric cars
in recent years, the nepalese government has encouraged people to buy electric vehicles. local car dealers said that the government's low taxes on electric vehicles and rising fuel prices have made nepalese people turn their attention to electric vehicles.
currently, nepal implements a tiered tax scheme on imported electric vehicles: electric vehicles with a power of less than 50kw are subject to an import tax of 10%; electric vehicles with a power of 50-100kw are subject to an import tax of 15% and a consumption tax of 10%; electric vehicles with a power of 100-200kw are subject to an import tax of 20% and a consumption tax of 20%... the cumulative tax on imported gasoline vehicles is as high as 172%.
in addition to low taxes and fees, local banks have also introduced policy benefits, providing loans of up to 90% of the car purchase costs.
in addition, the nepalese government has stipulated that all gasoline vehicles over 20 years old must be scrapped, and some local governments have stipulated that newly purchased taxis must be electric vehicles.
however, from the current reality, the high prices of some brand cars and the weak local infrastructure objectively hinder the further popularization of electric vehicles in nepal.
deepak bhandari, a taxi driver in kathmandu who has been in the industry for more than ten years, told reporters that it is not easy for local taxi drivers to buy a new car. the local government requires the scrapping of over-aged oil vehicles and the replacement of electric vehicles. however, after choosing and choosing, only the tata xpres-t electric car, which costs about 3.7 million nepalese rupees, is acceptable in terms of price. even so, this is equivalent to the income of an ordinary taxi driver for seven years. after paying the monthly installments for the new car, he can only make a living with difficulty.
another pressing issue hindering the development of electric vehicles in nepal is the scarcity of charging stations. dhakal, chairman of the federation of nepal chambers of commerce and industry, said that nepal still lacks sufficient electric vehicle infrastructure. currently, most charging stations in nepal are owned by automobile companies and only provide services for cars produced by the company. recently, the nepal national energy authority installed 51 charging stations across nepal. however, gnavali, the person in charge of this work, said that this is far from enough to meet daily needs. "if one of the charging stations loses power for an hour, it will cause chaos."
author: wang xin
text: wang xin, a reporter in kathmandu photo: xinhua news agency editor: gu wenjun responsible editor: shen qinhan
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