Conventional wisdom suggests that unreliable electricity grids would hinder electric vehicle (EV) adoption.
Yet, chronic power shortages in Africa are not blocking progress but rather catalysing solutions that bypass traditional infrastructure limitations entirely.
Instead of waiting for grid stability that may never arrive, entrepreneurs and charging infrastructure developers are building systems that treat unreliable grids as irrelevant to their core operations.
It’s a matter of necessity.
The Off-Grid Breakthrough
In the Northwest province of South Africa, a charging station operates in complete independence from the national grid. It combines solar panel arrays with lithium-ion battery storage to deliver ultra-fast charging that rivals any grid-connected facility globally.
When a Porsche Taycan arrived at 40% charge, the station delivered 18 minutes of charging at nearly 200 kilowatts peak power. The facility’s solar panels and storage batteries respond seamlessly to demand fluctuations that would stress many conventional grid connections.
This is not experimental technology but commercial infrastructure handling the full power requirements of modern EVs.
Similar installations are proliferating across Johannesburg, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, operating as microgrids that couple solar generation with battery storage.
And the model is spreading beyond South Africa’s borders with a speed that suggests genuine commercial viability.
Rays and Bans
Ethiopia’s 2024 decision to become the first country globally to ban petrol and diesel vehicle imports represents the kind of bold policy intervention that forces markets to respond with genuine solutions.
The move triggered rapid infrastructure development, with telecommunications companies installing 600 kilowatt stations that incorporate solar coupling as standard.
Rwanda followed with a ban on internal combustion engine motorcycles, whilst Seychelles has emerged as one of the continent’s fastest-growing markets for four-wheeled EVs.
East Africa’s thriving two-wheeler and three-wheeler markets demonstrate that the conventional development pathway, which assumes robust grid infrastructure must precede EV adoption, may be entirely backwards for emerging economies facing energy access challenges.
The Economics of Energy Independence
The business case for off-grid charging infrastructure now competes favourably with grid-connected alternatives even in markets with stable electricity supply.
Solar panel and battery storage costs have declined substantially, whilst utility electricity prices and fuel costs continue rising, creating a convergence that transforms what was once a necessity-driven workaround into a genuinely superior commercial proposition.
South Africa’s experience demonstrates the scale of market potential.
The country’s energy crisis drove 10 gigawatts of private solar installations by July 2025, predominantly rooftop systems installed by property owners who concluded that self-generation offered better economics than grid dependence.
In 2021, the country ranked sixth globally for residential energy storage installations, remarkable for a developing economy.
This distributed energy infrastructure creates a foundation for EV charging that developed markets with stable grids cannot easily replicate.
Homeowners and commercial sites with backup battery systems already possess the capacity to support vehicle charging without additional grid upgrades or utility coordination. The transition from stationary storage to mobility applications becomes incremental rather than revolutionary.
One South African company secured a R100 million investment from the Development Bank of Southern Africa specifically for scaling off-grid charging infrastructure, signalling that financial institutions recognise the model’s viability rather than viewing it as a risky bet on unproven technology.
Technical Maturity Meets Market Reality
The charging infrastructure emerging across Africa demonstrates conclusively that high-power charging operates reliably without grid dependence.
The technical data from operational installations proves that solar-battery systems can deliver the power levels modern EVs require, including ultra-fast charging that matches or exceeds what grid-connected stations provide in developed markets.
Charging patterns align remarkably well with distributed solar-battery systems, given that 80% to 90% of charging occurs at home or workplace locations where vehicles sit idle for extended periods.
This usage pattern allows vehicles to charge opportunistically throughout the day, smoothing demand peaks and maximising solar generation utilisation in ways that actually improve system economics.
South Africa now ranks in the global top 10 for EV charging infrastructure readiness relative to its vehicle fleet, according to the International Energy Agency, a position achieved through private sector leadership that built networks before government mandates or subsidies materialised.
The Battery Opportunity
Batteries sit at the centre of this energy transition in ways that create genuine industrialisation opportunities for African economies.
Africa’s experience with stationary energy storage systems, driven by years of grid instability, has created local battery assembly industries that possess skills and manufacturing capabilities transferring directly to vehicle applications.
The expertise developed for stationary storage applies directly to vehicle batteries with modifications rather than wholesale reinvention.
Africa’s mineral wealth adds another dimension.
The continent supplies critical battery materials including manganese, cobalt and lithium to global markets whilst capturing minimal value beyond raw material extraction.
South Africa’s manganese resources create specific opportunities for cathode material production, a higher-value segment of the battery supply chain.
Morocco and Egypt are advancing battery-related manufacturing projects that could anchor regional value chains, whilst the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) provides a framework for developing integrated production networks.
So the question facing African nations is not whether they possess the resources or capabilities to participate in the battery value chain, but rather whether they will seize the industrialisation opportunity that their energy challenges have inadvertently created.
Policy Leadership and Market Signals
Ethiopia and Rwanda’s import bans demonstrate that developing economies need not wait for perfect conditions before making decisive moves toward transport electrification.
These bans have triggered infrastructure investment and market development that would have taken years to materialise under gradualist policy approaches.
Extended producer responsibility regulations in South Africa, introduced in 2022, require battery importers and manufacturers to manage products from cradle to grave, creating the regulatory foundation for circular economy development.
Electric buses present a particularly promising policy opportunity, given that pilot programmes in Senegal and other regions have conclusively proven the technology works for public transport applications.
Norway’s 2018 mandate, which requires 100% of new car sales to be zero emission vehicles, resulted in battery EVs capturing around 95% of the market within just a few years, demonstrating how clear policy signals allow markets to respond decisively.
A Different Development Pathway
Africa’s approach to EV infrastructure differs fundamentally from developed markets that built charging networks atop stable grids, thus creating what may prove to be a more robust long-term model as climate change threatens grid stability.
The continent’s energy challenges are forcing innovation in distributed, resilient systems that other regions may eventually need to adopt as their own grids face increasing reliability challenges.
Distributed solar-battery systems require less upfront capital investment and can scale incrementally as demand grows rather than requiring massive infrastructure buildouts before the first vehicle charges.
Communities and businesses can deploy charging capability independently without waiting for national grid upgrades or government programmes that may never materialise.
South Africa’s EV market illustrates the transition potential.
The country introduced its first battery EV in 2013 with slow initial progress but reached a turning point in 2025 when first-half sales exceeded 4,000 units and matched the previous annual total.
The Path Forward
The technical evidence is now overwhelming that Africa can support EV adoption despite unreliable grids.
Off-grid charging infrastructure powered by solar and batteries delivers the performance modern EVs require without compromise.
The economic case strengthens continuously as component costs fall and fossil fuel prices rise, whilst financial institutions are backing infrastructure deployment with substantial capital.
The remaining challenges are policy coordination, skills development and financing structures rather than technical barriers or economic viability.
Now, will policymakers, investors and industry leaders recognise that necessity-driven innovation has created genuine advantages rather than merely acceptable workarounds?
And will other regions learn from Africa’s experience before their own infrastructure challenges force similar adaptations under less favourable circumstances?