Will Pakistan be getting cheap electric cars?
A private group SZS says it will be launching the electric car M7 later this month. The SZS officials say the car will be comparable to Suzuki Cultus and Kia Picanto in performance except speed and will be priced at Rs2 million and Rs2.35 million. Shaukat Qureshi, COO of SZSs EV Auto Division, says they are expecting first consignment of 12 electric cars to arrive later this month. The official says another 200 cars are expected to arrive in August. The Pakistan government, in its effort to tackle climate change and clean green Pakistan initiative, has set a target to electrify 30% of Pakistans total cars by the year 2030. To achieve the target, the government has announced incentives for companies to start electric vehicles business in the country in the forms of reduced duties and taxes. The shipments have delayed due to the choking of the shipping lines amid the pandemic, Qureshi said. But now our first consignment has been shipped and would be reaching Pakistan in next 20 days. The second consignment will come next month.  Although he declined to share the name of the Chinese company they have collaborated with, he said that their partnering company was already exporting cars to 34 countries. Also read: Toyota Fortuner may become cheaper by Rs224,000  The import has only been made possible after the government reduced Customs duty from 25% to 10% in the budget. At 25% Customs duty, electric cars didnt make a business. It now does, he said. The electric car companies have been allowed to import complete cars (called CBUs) at 10% duty for one year. The duties will be increased after one year to discourage companies relying on imported CBUs and start manufacturing cars at home. The sales tax has been reduced to 1% on electric cars, while the Customs duty has also been reduced to 1% for electric vehicle-specific parts. The cars price will come down when manufacturing begins due to lesser duty and tax, Qureshi claimed. But at the moment we will begin with testing market.  Qureshi says they will give eight-year warranty for the lithium battery. Meanwhile, the car itself will have three-year warranty. Sales and Marketing Director Ejaz Hussain said that the car will have a battery capacity of 7.5kWh and 10kWh. Also read: Proton Saga review: The cheapest sedan in Pakistan  It is like City car which has two engine sizes: 1.3 and 1.5 liters. The difference is power and comfort one gets, Hussain explained. According to Hussain, both cars give a maximum speed of 70km per hour and gives a 260km to 300km range on full charge. But people will have options to increase the range with added feature of solar panel on roof and range extender. Solar panel will increase range by another 50kms. The range extender, which will come with a fuel tank of 12 liters will add range by another 300kms.  Hussain said that the standard variant of 7.5kWh car will approximately be priced at Rs2 million. The 10kWh variant is priced at an estimated price of Rs2.15 million. The added feature of solar panel will cost Rs50,000 while the ranger extender will cost Rs150,000.  Hussain said that range extender will work as a generator for the electric motor. According to Ministry of Climate Change, 42% of the total pollution in Pakistan comes from cars and other vehicles such as buses and trucks. It means electrifying the mode of transport in the country may help in to reduce spreading of pollution in the country.