The BYD Dolphin is now the lowest priced EV in South Africa

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Sales of electric vehicles have been very slow in South Africa, but the sector is starting to show signs of growth. Sales of battery electric vehicles in South Africa came close to 1,000 units per year for the first time in history. Last year, 931 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were sold in South Africa, almost doubling from 502 in 2022 and quadrupling from 218 in 2021. With only 1,955 BEVs sold since 2018, it is clear that sales of BEVs have been slow in recent years. South Africa compared to comparable car markets around the world. This is due to the limited variety of BEV models in the country, coupled with the high import duties and taxes levied on electric vehicles.

This means that most vehicles available on the global market would end up being quite expensive compared to their equivalent ICE vehicles if introduced in South Africa. This price difference would be more prominent in the smaller vehicle segments, making it a bit challenging to sell those electric vehicles. Taxes in South Africa are set at 18% for ICE imports, versus 25% for EV imports. There is also the ad valorem tax for electric vehicles, which in most cases makes the cost of an electric car more than twice the average price of a new ICE vehicle of a similar make/model. This is probably why the majority of EV models sold in South Africa are the more expensive models with prices starting from well over 1 million rand ($54,000) and many of them also cost from over 2 million rand ($108,320). In this premium model segment, prices are more competitive than in the smaller vehicle segment. On the other hand, people who buy $100,000 cars probably aren't too concerned about an extra $10,000.

A 2022 report from Car dealer showed that more than 70% of South Africans who responded to the survey would be interested in switching to electric if they had the option to purchase an electric vehicle costing less than R500,000 ($27,000). There is good news as South Africans will now have an EV priced from R539,000 ($29,000). This BEV will now be the lowest priced BEV in South Africa. The BYD Dolphin will be around R150,000 ($8,000) cheaper than the Great Wall Motor Ora 03, which was the most affordable BEV in South Africa before the introduction of the Dolphin.

This will be a big boost for the South African EV sector if BYD can release theses in decent volumes. BYD launched the ATTO 3 in South Africa last year, but we haven't heard of any major sales activity post-launch. The ATTO 3 was not included in the 2023 sales charts, indicating that sales may not have started yet. The ATTO 3 is also listed on the BYD KZN website starting at R768,000 ($41,600). Have you seen ATTO 3s on South African roads since its launch last year?

Back to the dolphin. The Dolphin is offered in two main variants:

• 45 kWh with 70 kW, 94 hp engine and 330 km range – R539,000
• 60 kWh with 150 kW, 201 hp engine and 427 km range – R599,900

I hope that BYD can ramp up its activities in South Africa, including marketing and customer awareness programs, in a market that really needs more education about electric vehicles. BYD has an opportunity to really promote its more affordable EVs to this market. I also hope that a right-hand drive BYD Seagull is also in the works, and that it could then come to South Africa and other markets on the African continent as an even more affordable EV.