Government has approved investments for electric cars and focus from March 2026.The Minister of Finance has outlined some key strategies to ensure it remains globally competitive.addressed several automotive sector-related topics including the adoption of EV manufacture, mitigating gross production losses due to load shedding and ameliorating the exporting process at ports with private sector partnerships.
Mabasa continued, saying, “We welcome government’s decision to reallocate funds to specifically support the transition towards our broader evolution towards new energy vehicles because this demonstrates a commitment to provide the necessary fiscal support for the development and adoption of EVs”.The investment allowance for EVs is highlighted as a complementary initiative to the existing Automotive Production Development Programme .
Critical for this is government’s engagement with industry on how locally produced EVs can emerge as globally competitive in comparison to predominant battery production locations like China, Japan and South Korea. While government’s commitment is evident and welcomed, it is important to recognise the scale of investments required by industry. This funding should be seen as a significant initial step, withIt is also important to note that the 2026 implementation rollout date for the investment allowance does not cover the pre-investment cycles before some of the production starts.