South Africa is making headway towards green energy solutions despite a huge load-shedding situation. A group from Stellenbosch University (SU), a public research institution, is looking into the practicality of launching the first electric taxi service in South Africa.
The range of these taxis is up to 120 miles before a recharge is required. Their electric motor has a power output of 90 kWh, and their batteries can store 53.76 kWh.
Together with Rham Equipment, the SU team converted a minibus taxi into an electric vehicle. Currently, the modified taxi is being put through its paces on the road, with performance evaluations to follow.
A member of the crew named Stephan Lacock explained that the change included dismantling the vehicle’s original internal combustion engine (ICE), along with the fuel tank, manual gearbox, gas line and radiator.
The group then collaborated with Rham Equipment to create a “reproducible kit” that details the core elements of the electric powertrain. Among these parts are a single-speed reduction gearbox, electronic control unit, inverter, charger, and electric motor. The minibus’s regenerative braking system, which helps extend the vehicle’s range by recapturing kinetic energy during deceleration, is particularly noteworthy.
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South Africa Joins Clean Mobility trend
Many countries have begun producing and deploying electric vehicles as a long-term solution to climate change. South Africa has the same goal in mind and is working towards it as well. Professor Thinus Booyesen from SU’s Department of Industrial Engineering discussed the potential for indigenous producers to investigate electric vehicle production in the context of electric taxis. He plans to do this by setting up new factories specifically for this function.
Booysen acknowledged the need of South Africa keeping up with the shift to electric vehicles, emphasising the risk to many employment if the country lags behind. He stressed that the government and the car industry cannot afford to take things for granted.
Booysen elaborated on why the group decided to work together on the minibus project.
The professor hoped that by doing so, more people would learn about the niche set of skills required for the domestic assembly of electric automobiles. The environmental impact of such vehicles was another topic he hoped to address with the South African public.
Navigating famous Energy Crisis
While there has been a lot of progress in South Africa, the country’s persistent energy crisis is still a major issue. MTN’s stock performance in the first half of 2023 was significantly impacted by this problem.
Not only do the frequent blackouts hurt businesses of all kinds, but they also raise questions about the practicality of electric taxis. Concerns have been raised about meeting the routine charging demands of electric vehicles in the absence of consistent electricity. An already vulnerable electricity grid might be rendered even more so by this situation.
Group member Johan Giliomee said the cabs would be fueled by solar energy, which contradicts what Booyen said about the energy difficulty being a potential barrier to clean mobility initiatives. Using solar panels and battery storage systems is crucial to this strategy. Giliomee also alluded to hydrogen as a possible alternate approach.
Initiatives to launch a clean transport revolution have recently been launched in Nigeria, another African country. A government agency bought electric vehicles just last month, and plans to buy 3,000 CNG-powered buses were announced not long after.
The initial goal was to lessen the blow of rising transport costs, but the ultimate goal is to lessen the nation’s carbon footprint. While the article rightly praises the goodwill underlying these ideas, it stresses the importance of giving careful consideration to how they will be put into action.