How Ethiopia’s Ban on Gasoline Car Imports Fueled an EV Boom
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For years, a major drag on Ethiopia’s budget has been subsidizing gasoline for consumers
In 2024, Ethiopia banned the import of fossil fuel-powered vehicles and slashed tariffs on their electric equivalents, a move made to save the government from having to subsidize gasoline for consumers. The policy also upended the auto market by making brand new EVs cost-competitive with second and third-hand gasoline cars.
EV adoption has since grown from less than 1% to nearly 6% of all of the vehicles on the road in the country, with models from Chinese companies like BYD packing showrooms. To support the boom, Ethiopia is making use of its investments in electricity infrastructure, including the $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance dam completed last year. Read more from Fasika Tadesse and Akshat Rathi today on Bloomberg:Electric Vehicle Sales Boom as Ethiopia Bans Fossil-Fuel Car Imports