EV Policy ‘to encourage’ Made-in-Pakistan

The introduction of Electric Vehicle Policy would help promote Pakistan's transport sector in the coming years, Prime Minister's Advisor on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam expressed this hope on Friday.
Addressing a launching ceremony of the country's first fully three-wheeler electric vehicles here, he said the EV policy had been framed with the consultation of all stakeholders.
The event `Showcasing Pakistan's First Fully-Electric Three-Wheel Vehicle' was organized by the Ministry of Climate Change in collaboration with the Board of Investment and Sazgar Engineering Works Limited.
He said the overarching electric vehicle policy, which was approved by Prime Minister Imran Khan last year on November 5, would also significantly help boost pollution-free transport facilities in the country.
Aslam said there were four main benefits of the EV policy as EVs would run on 70% less cost compared to its fuel-based counterpart.
From the running costs of electric cars to be very environmental-friendly, the introduction of electric vehicles in the country would also help cut the country's oil import bill, yield countless benefits for both the environment and the people and their overall lifestyle and the way our cities look, the advisor added.
Amin Aslam said that electric vehicle policy would save around $2 billion spent annually on oil imports for meeting the transport sector's needs.
He said that efforts were also being made for localization of EV manufacturing, enabling Pakistan to become part of the global value chain of EV manufacturing.
He said the EV policy and economic incentives would also be extended to the auto manufacturing sector to produce electric vehicles locally.
Listing the benefits of the electric vehicles, the prime minister's advisor said that by adopting electric vehicles, the consumers could save over 30 percent cost of vehicle maintenance, because these do not require engine oil and driving them was highly comfortable, and affordable.
"Electric vehicles do not emit smoke and these are cleaner, do not cause noise pollution and end fuel cost as well," Malik Amin Aslam said.
"Emission of climate change-causing carbon dioxide from traditional vehicles contribute to greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and accelerate climate change and overall environmental degradation and cause health problems.
Conversely, all-electric vehicles don't produce climate change-causing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, when any of us drives them," he added.