Nepal

At the moment, Nepal’s transport system is entirely reliant on imported fossil fuels which makes it vulnerable to price variations on the global market. Especially in metropolitan areas, combustion engine vehicles are contributing to poor air quality, affecting people’s health. Moreover, the transport sector is responsible for 36% of total annual energy sector related GHG emissions in the country.

The Government of Nepal has recognized the adoption of EVs as a key priority, and even though policy measures to incentivize EVs have been introduced over the past years, the know-how and ability of actors to develop and enact business and financial models are insufficient. According to Nepal’s second Nationally Determined Contribution (2020), 20% of all public transport vehicles should be electric by 2025.

Public mini- and microbuses serviced more than 7 million passengers daily in 2019. Interventions towards EV adoption have so far not targeted the mini- and microbus segment even though it is considerably significant, still growing, and has therefore the largest transformation potential of all public transport sub-sectors in Nepal.

Through funding by the Mitigation Action Facility, GIZ and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) are supporting Nepal to transition public transport to electric mobility with a focus on the mini- and microbus sector (see SET4NPL project). This electrification of vehicles will also help the country to make better use of its domestically produced hydropower-based electricity thereby reducing the import of fossil fuels together with the associated trade deficit.