First Moroccan EV factory to run on wind power

• The partnership will avail $800 million in the first phase and will have a battery storage capacity of 2,000 MWh.

• The overall investment in the EV battery gigafactory is expected to be around $1.24 billion, with the potential to increase to $6.3 billion as Gotion scales up production capacity.

• Our take: Morocco's investments in clean energy lower its products' carbon footprint… Read more (2 min)

SA car sales surge while exports slump

• The passenger car sales increased by 5.5% in October 2024, marking it as the highest passenger car sales month since October 2019.

• For the domestic sales, an estimated 80.4% represented dealer sales, while 14.8% were sales to the vehicle rental industry, 2.6% to corporate fleets, and 2.2% to government.

• Our take: Strategic partnerships with established EV manufacturers are key to South Africa's progress… Read more (2 min)

Encouraging mobility fundraising totals

• One company raised twice. Two deals were in the bracket above $10 million, one between $1 million and $2 million, and two deals below $500,000. The previous month both deals sat in the two lower brackets. 

• The deal types varied last month. They break down into one general venture round, a Series A, two grants and a (big) slice of debt. In September there was only one venture round and one debt deal. 

• Our take: Overall, this was a good month in terms of fundraising... Read more (2 min)

• Ethiopia’s EV switch faces obstacles: Ethiopia became the first country to ban ICE car imports in January, which was a bold move amid rising fuel costs. EVs are taking off but issues such as unreliable electricity, high costs for spare parts, and a lack of skilled technicians hinder adoption. Though the government plans to build public charging stations and EV battery manufacturing, the infrastructure is currently inadequate, pushing some buyers back to gasoline cars. (Fortune)

• Alternatives to EV charging: Chinese company Beijing Sebo has created mobile charging solutions to address Africa’s unreliable electricity for EVs by deploying vans that use waste-to-energy technology. Beijing Sebo’s mobile app enables users to request charging vans, while companies like Spiro offer battery-swapping services. (The St Kitts Nevis Observer)

• Economies of scale key to car production: A report released by UNCTAD explains why car production is out of reach for many developing countries. The report says that achieving economies of scale is necessary for profitability and this would require producing up to 250,000 vehicles annually on the same platform. This level of production is far out of reach for many developing countries and even for some wealthier nations. (UNCTAD)