South Africa: SA Lags As More Electric Cars Take to the Roads in Other Parts of the World

6 June 2022
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
analysis By Ethan Van Diemen

With the hike in the petrol price and the effects of climate change already raining down on South Africa, a shift from the internal combustion engine can't come soon enough. There are some alternatives in the pipeline.

In the past week, the cost of petrol nudged up against the R25 a litre mark, so South Africans can be forgiven for considering alternatives to cars that run on conventional fuel.

According to a statement released by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy, the average price of Brent crude oil had increased from $104.7 to $115 a barrel.

The department said the main contributing factors were the increasing demand amid the summer driving season in the northern hemisphere and the European Union's discussions on possible sanctions on crude oil and petroleum products from Russia.

With the petrol price seeing such a big increase and the effects of climate change already raining down on South Africa, a shift from the internal combustion engine could not come soon enough for road users.

While these are unlikely to ameliorate the more pernicious impacts and cost implications of our dependence on hydrocarbons, there are some alternatives in the pipeline, if escaping the ever-rising cost of...

Read the full story on Daily Maverick.

Tagged:
Copyright © 2022 Daily Maverick. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica publishes around 400 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.