CHARGE Calls On South African Finance Minister To Address EV Duties & Fund Renewable Charging Infrastructure In 2026 Budget

Ahead of the South Africa 2026 Budget Speech on Wednesday, Zero Carbon Charge (CHARGE) has called on the South African Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana to align import duties on electric vehicles (EVs) with those applied to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, scrap the ad valorem tax on EVs, and allocate dedicated funding to roll out off-grid, solar-powered EV charging infrastructure nationwide. South Africans have been starved of affordable electric vehicles due to a number of reasons, such as high import duties and taxes — petrol and diesel vehicles imported from the EU into South Africa have a customs duty of 18%, while for electric vehicles it is 25%. There are also the Ad Valorem Customs Excise Duties and VAT. 

The South African government should at least reduce the import duties to match the 18% for ICE vehicles. In fact, they could learn from several governments on the African continent that have reduced and even removed import duties for BEVs completely to encourage adoption. Countries that have reduced or removed import duties on BEVs include Ethiopia, Rwanda, Mauritius, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, among several others. Most of the vehicles on the South African market at the time were mostly the more premium versions, priced well over R1 million rand, presenting a high barrier for most consumers. There are now a few models that cost less than R500,000, such as the BYD Dolphin Surf, and if import duties were reduced, the prices of these vehicles would be even more favorable. 

BEV sales need a boost in South Africa, especially after a sales decline of 17% YoY in 2025. BEV sales were already very low, and one had hoped sales would kick in following years of decent growth, albeit from a very small base. While 596,818 vehicles were sold in South Africa in 2025 in the overall market, the highest number in over a decade and up 15.7% year on year, only 1,018 passenger battery-electric vehicles were sold in South Africa last year, down 17% from 1,231 in 2024. That means BEVs made up only 0.17% of all the vehicles sold in South Africa in 2025. Urgent action is really needed to catalyze the adoption of electric vehicles. CHARGE says South Africa cannot tax clean mobility as a luxury while claiming to prioritize decarbonization and industrial growth, nor can it expect EV adoption to accelerate without funding the infrastructure that makes ownership practical.

South Africa has recently announced some incentives for local assembly and manufacture of new energy vehicles. Starting from the first of March, 2026, automakers in South Africa will be allowed to reclaim tax amounting to 150% of investments they make into facilities and machinery for new energy vehicle manufacturing. This includes HEVs, PHEVs, and BEVs. While CHARGE welcomes the 150% manufacturing tax incentive for electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles from 1 March 2026, this will not unlock scale if EVs continue to face high import duties and additional ad valorem (luxury) tax.

 “You cannot incentivise EV production on one hand and penalise EV adoption on the other,” said Joubert Roux, Co-Founder and Chair of CHARGE. “Without urgent tax reform and infrastructure funding, South Africa risks constraining domestic EV demand at precisely the moment it is trying to attract EV investment.”

CHARGE adds that the National Treasury must now move beyond policy intent and fund charging infrastructure, as envisaged in the 2023 EV White Paper. The policy recognizes charging infrastructure as a foundational pillar of South Africa’s EV transition, committing the government to enable large-scale rollout, remove regulatory bottlenecks, and crowd in private investment. It also acknowledges that off-grid charging solutions can support EV adoption without adding pressure to an already constrained electricity system. CHARGE is calling on the Treasury to fast-track implementation by recognizing off-grid charging stations as both energy and transport infrastructure and supporting their rollout accordingly.

CHARGE says that the EV charging network will largely be built by the private sector, but only if the financial framework makes it viable. The 2026 Budget must therefore provide:

• Clear tax treatment for EV charging infrastructure: including VAT certainty on electricity sold through charging stations and confirmation that charging and battery storage assets qualify for existing renewable energy tax incentives.
•  Accelerated write-offs for charging equipment and battery storage: reducing upfront capital costs and improving project bankability.
• Access to concessional, long-term finance through development finance institutions: recognizing the long payback periods of infrastructure investments.
• Targeted co-funding or performance-based incentives: such as capital grants or support linked to electricity dispensed, to de-risk early-stage rollout.
• Dedicated funding for renewable energy micro-grids linked to charging stations: enabling off-grid, solar-powered systems that add clean generation capacity without increasing pressure on the national grid. 

“Charging infrastructure requires significant upfront capital and long payback periods,” Roux said. “Government doesn’t need to build the network, but it must create the conditions for the private sector to scale it.”

CHARGE operates and is scaling a fully off-grid, solar-powered fast-charging model which demonstrates that a grid-independent, renewable-powered network is viable at scale. You can watch a video about one of these stations here.

Images courtesy of Ryan Jarret.