Ghana has held the maiden Electric Mobility Conference and Exhibition to discuss the prospects and challenges with electric vehicles as it prepares to roll out nationwide policy to introduce electric vehicles into the transportation sector.
This is in line with the global push for the reduction in emissions from transportation-related activities under the Climate Change Agenda.
To spearhead Ghana’s emission reduction drive, the country’s technical regulator, Energy Commission, in 2019, launched the Drive Electric Initiative (DEI-Gh) to create productive demand to utilise electricity productively, usher in an era of green and sustainable technology for the future, reduce pollution and contribute to efforts towards climate action while helping to resolve the electricity generation overcapacity in the short to medium term.
Since 2019, the desire by some Ghanaians to own electric vehicles has been growing as they are considered more economical than internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.
As a result, the Energy Commission and Ministry of Energy, in partnership with the Ministry of Transport, on Thursday, September 23, 2021, held the maiden E-mobility Conference under the theme: ‘E-Mobility in Ghana Opportunities and Challenges’.
The conference brought together electricity experts, policymakers, tax officers and players in the automobile industry.
In his keynote address, the Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh noted that statistics by the International Energy Agency shows that there are about 10 million electric vehicles worldwide.
He said it was for that reason that in 2019, his Ministry collaborated with the Energy Commission to launch the Drive Electric Initiative to create productive demand for Ghana’s excess electricity, as well as a reduction in vehicular pollution and carbon dioxide emissions.
“Electric vehicles are the future and the future is here with us,’’ the Minister said.
Dr Opoku Prempeh added that his Ministry was working closely with the Ministry of Finance to secure an import waiver for 100 per cent electric vehicles to help drive the penetration of electric vehicles, while putting together other measures to drive further growth and the sustainable utilisation of electricity.
He was hopeful that the maiden conference would provide the platform to shape the E-mobility agenda to open new markets for green investments in Ghana.
The Board Chairman of Energy Commission, Prof Ebenezer Oduro Owusu, said the Commission was in the process of developing standards and regulations for electric vehicle charging infrastructure to ensure safety and a level playing field for the EV market.
A Deputy Minister for Transport, Fredrick Obeng Adom, said through collaborative efforts, the Ministry had also commenced a process to develop an E-mobility Policy for Ghana, incorporating implementation frameworks for the deployment and scale-up of Electric Vehicles.
“This would be the first of its kind and would propel green development initiatives. It will also serve as important leverage that would set the tone for the gradual decarbonisation of our transportation system,’’ he said.
