AS electric vehicles (EV) grow in popularity globally, they made up less than 1% of vehicles purchased in South Africa in 2022. If the country is looking to match its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050, that percentage must rise - and quickly. Well, a company that is packaging leading international electric vehicles is Everlectric.
The business was founded by three former accountants who met during Chartered Accountant articles at Deloitte. Ndia Magadagela became a senior deal maker after articles and is now the CEO of Everlectric. Paul Plummer continued at Deloitte Consulting within Monitor Deloitte, he is now CFO at Everlectric, and Wesley van der Walt followed numerous entrepreneurial interests post completing his articles and is now COO at Everlectric.
Ndia Magadagela said the business started in 2020 and is a South African electric vehicle-as-a-service (EVaaS) business that’s changing the way we think about urban logistics.
“Everlectric is harnessing disruptive technologies to lead the charge in decarbonising the logistics industry in South Africa. We are currently a team of six people, but we are rapidly growing and are seeking to develop and drive new energy vehicle skills and competencies in South Africa,” she said.
Their target clients are the fleet owners and operators who have a desire to reduce their logistics costs whilst also being environmentally responsible.
They’ve recently partnered with retail company Woolworths and have launched an extensive roll-out of electric panel vans (EV) to deliver their customers’ online purchases.
“As with DSV, Woolworths and several other clients that will be going public soon, we partner closely to analyse their fleet and convert routes that are technically possible, operationally efficient and return cost savings. We are always eager and keen to perform a fleet analysis and run free EV trials for new clients to assist them in a responsible fleet transition,” said Magadagela.
Woolworths, in partnership with DSV and Everlectric, is the first South African retailer to embark on an extensive roll-out of electric panel vans (EVs) to deliver their customers’ online purchases.
This move, they say, is part of the company’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and promoting sustainability in the retail industry.
“We have bold sustainability goals and ambitions, which included the goal to have zero net carbon emissions by 2040, so this investment is a big step towards these goals,” said Woolworths’ Head of Online and Mobile Liz Hillock.
Magadagela said clients like Woolworths announced the deployment of 41 electric online delivery vehicles covering selected routes in Cape Town and Gauteng with further roll-outs and extensions into KwaZulu-Natal planned to follow.
“The relationship started two years ago when DSV in partnership with Everlectric and Woolworths ran a pilot of two electric vehicles. Over three years of testing, the pilot proved that electric vehicles are commercially, technically and financially viable in commercial fleets,” she added.
So in a time of incessant power cuts, is the country ready for electric vehicles?
According to Magadagela, EVs are better than ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles.
“EVs are by far the more efficient and therefore better solution to run logistics. We are seeking an exponential reduction in a key metric in logistics - cost per km (running at one fifth of the cost of fuel). All of this is with the not so minor proviso that you need to be able to keep them charged. Keeping the EVs charged is key to Everlectric’s value proposition to our clients. As far as possible, Everlectric utilises renewable energy to power our vehicles.”
She added that Everlectric is rolling out charging stations and infrastructure where their clients need it most to execute on their commercial fleet operations. She said these charging stations will primarily be situated in urban metros. The location for the installation of these chargers is determined on several operational and commercial considerations and may include existing fuel stations where it makes operational sense.
We would love to assist clients with fleets, explore the options available to not only decarbonise, but also save on your monthly costs that is associated with our Everlectric vehicles solutions. In the next five years, Everlectric aims to expand from their current 100 vehicles to several thousand.
Quick facts:
A fully charged vehicle can travel up to 300 km.
They have found that this is enough for urban logistics and most of their clients operate well within this operational range.
It takes 45 minutes to charge their current vehicles on a DC fast charger and can be charged overnight on an AC charger.
Through their 24-month POC, they have had no operational downtime and they have managed the EVs to ensure they haven’t once run out of range.
They have covered over 400 000km to date and with their commercial scaling and are projecting to do over 150 000km per month, all with no major downtime/ range issues experienced or anticipated.