The Middle Eastern country of Jordan may not be at the front of many people’s thoughts when queried about electric vehicles, but that may not be the case forever, going by recent moves made by the government and private sector there.
In addition to electric vehicle (EV) purchases being made exempt from various taxes and fees, the Jordanian government recently (last year) entered into agreement with the Chicago-based battery-manufacturer AllCell Technologies, with the intent being, over the next decade, the development of a solar-powered electric vehicle charging network composed of 3,000 different stations.
The idea is for some charging stations to be installed at gas stations, allowing for fast partial charging, and for others designed for longer charging to be installed in places where EVs will be left parked for long periods of time. As part of the $120 million deal, an app is also expected to be made available to allow users to easily locate charging stations.
Here’s more via a new article from Venture Magazine:
AllCell’s Jordanian CEO Said al-Hallaj predicts his agreement with the government, combined with the tax and fee exemption, will result in roughly 50,000 to 100,000 of Jordan’s 1 million-plus cars becoming electric within 5 to 7 years.
…The government was never going to be able to introduce the same electric car subsidies or grants that have been introduced in some wealthy Western countries. So it came up with the next best thing. “If you import an electric car you are exempt from all charges and taxes – that’s almost double the price of the car. You’re making electric cars more competitive than gasoline cars,” al-Hallaj said.
…But before you dash out to buy an EV, it’s important to note that regulations still have to be put in place before the project can advance. There’s already a law in place that governs the transportation, or ‘wheeling’, of renewable energy along transmission lines. But AllCell is still waiting on the government to create further legislation that will oversee its business model, which includes a 30 MW solar farm that will feed into the grid to cover the electricity being sucked up by the proposed network of charging stations.
“There are laws for renewable energy wheeling, but in our case, we’re selling to consumers and offering them a service that needs to be regulated,” al-Hallaj continued. “We’re waiting to clarify and get proper government agencies to draft and implement the right rules and regulations that cover this concept.”
It’s assumed that these will be offered up relatively soon, according to al-Hallaj. As it stands right now, there’s only one station operational (at the King Hussein Business Park), but there are supposed to be another 10 stations launched within the year.
Image of Amman, Jordan, via JPRichard / Shutterstock.com