Electric vehicles have made their presence felt on the streets of Damascus, albeit in limited numbers. This has sparked numerous inquiries about these eco-friendly cars, including their functioning, registration procedures, associated fees, and the process of recharging them. Contact online >>
Electric vehicles have made their presence felt on the streets of Damascus, albeit in limited numbers. This has sparked numerous inquiries about these eco-friendly cars, including their functioning, registration procedures, associated fees, and the process of recharging them.
According to Engineer Thaer Ringous, the Director of Damascus Transport, a total of 57 electric cars have been officially registered, along with 54 hybrid vehicles that run on a combination of gasoline and electricity.
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He noted that the law permits the import and registration of electric and hybrid cars, provided they comply with the necessary legal requirements. The registration process can vary between special entry and temporary entry, with temporary admission indicating that the vehicle will be employed for public services connected to government agencies and in accordance with the law.
Ringous also explained that most registered electric cars fall under the temporary entry category. In contrast, hybrid cars are predominantly classified as special entry. It’s worth mentioning that electric cars are registered and the associated fees are calculated based on the value specified on the customs certificate since they lack an internal combustion engine. In contrast, hybrids are treated like conventional vehicles due to their internal combustion engines, which are subject to the same regulations.
In a related context, Amer Deeb, an expert in the electric car sector, shared with Athr Press that the electric cars currently present in Damascus are primarily imported by investment companies and not intended for public use. He highlighted that these companies have brought in these vehicles for their employees with the aim of reducing gasoline consumption.
Deeb views this shift by companies as a highly positive development. However, he emphasized the crucial need to establish charging stations for these cars to facilitate their widespread adoption in Syria. He explained that this transition aligns with a global trend in response to the fuel crisis and is a significant part of an economic development effort to enhance the country’s economic well-being. Importing cars, forming partnerships with manufacturers, or establishing car assembly facilities represents a paradigm shift in the transportation and automotive sectors.
Deeb also pointed out that charging stations come in various forms and offer multiple ways to charge electric cars. Notably, approximately 90% of these cars do not rely on conventional electricity but instead utilize alternative energy sources like solar and wind power. He mentioned that hybrid cars, in contrast, primarily aim to conserve fuel.
Deeb disclosed plans for the construction of the first electric car charging station in Damascus, set to commence in early 2024, with plans for expansion to all governorates.
Furthermore, Deeb highlighted that the prices of these cars vary based on factors such as shipping capacity, manufacturer, and overall capacity. They start at 200 million Syrian pounds, offering affordability and potential savings on gasoline expenses for consumers.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Global electric vehicle (EV) markets today differ widely, shaped by different levels of policy support, corporate activity, consumer preference and awareness, driving patterns and cultural specificities. The role of policy has been particularly significant in steering corporate strategy towards electrification and enabling consumer uptake.
In today''s major EV markets – including China, Europe and the United States – early adoption was jump-started in many cases by policies to spur demand, such as vehicle purchase incentives. Direct incentives for carmakers were also used in China. Many of these countries and regions are now seeing EV markets maturing, especially for cars, for which sales shares are increasing rapidly. More developed markets such as China and several European countries are now progressively decreasing or phasing out incentive schemes for electric cars and shifting focus towards other segments such as heavy transport and charging.
At the same time, some governments in major markets have increased their targets for EV adoption further and are working to address other parts of EV supply chains, such as through policy support for vehicle and battery manufacturing and critical mineral supply chains. Many other countries outside the major markets have also started to introduce policy to support EV adoption in recent years, for the first time in some cases. Overall, global spending by governments and consumers on electric cars has significantly increased in the past few years, exceeding USD400billion in 2022.
This section of the Outlook provides information on selected policy developments announced between April 2022 and March 2023, since the last edition of the IEA Global Electric Vehicle Outlook in 2022.1
As in recent years, most policies supporting EVs target the electric light-duty vehicle (LDV) segment, for which market maturity is most advanced and vehicle availability greatest. In 2022, more than 90% of global sales of LDVs were covered by policy that encourages EV uptake. Typical policies include fuel economy and pollutant standards; zero-emission vehicle mandates; economic and budgetary regulation for fuels and vehicles, such as through fiscal regimes and taxation; purchase incentives and subsidies; and bans on internal combustion engine (ICE)-only vehicles.
There is an increasing policy focus on the heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) segment, including medium freight trucks, heavy freight trucks and buses, and almost 70% of global HDV sales are now covered by EV policies. Countries are increasing funding, committing to zero-emission vehicle2 (ZEV) deployment targets and enacting HDV-specific policies for the first time. In 2022, 11countries signed on to the Global Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Zero-Emission Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicles, bringing the total number of signatories to 27. These countries aim for 100% zero-emission new truck and bus sales by 2040.
Policies are also shifting towards electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), or charging, and currently almost 80% of global EV sales (LDV and HDV) are covered by EVSE-related policy. Countries are increasingly dedicating funds to EVSE deployment, acknowledging that lack of charging infrastructure can be a critical barrier to EV adoption.
The 2022-2023 period was notable for the announcement of policies in the European Union and United States – new CO2 standards and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), respectively – which are expected to have a significant impact on the pathway to zero-emission road transport. In addition, several EMDEs outside China have developed specific industrial policy to support battery and EV production, seeking to capitalise on opportunities to strengthen domestic manufacturing capacity.
Zero-emission vehicle targets are a cornerstone of policy for transport decarbonisation, and almost all such targets, with respect to market coverage, have relatively short- to medium-term implementation dates. For LDVs, around half of annual global sales are covered by targets for 2035 or earlier, increasing only slightly to 55% by 2050. While the vast majority of this coverage comes from China, the EuropeanUnion and the UnitedStates, there are promising increases in ambition in other markets.
Several of the policies announced in 2022 and early 2023 relate to the development of EV manufacturing in addition to EV deployment.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed in August 2022, includes various tax incentives and funding programmes to meet the aim of building a clean energy economy. Part of the Act concentrates on accelerating EV adoption, with dedicated funding drawn from the USD369billion allocated for climate investments.
In addition to demand-side credits for vehicle purchase, the IRA includes supply-side Advanced Manufacturing Production Tax Credits. Under this scheme, the US government provides subsidies for domestic battery production of up to USD35perkWh, plus another USD10perkWh for module assembly. Assuming average battery prices in 2022 are around USD150perkWh, these new US production incentives could account for nearly a third of total battery price.
Finally, in addition to confirming that countries with existing free trade agreements have preferred status as suppliers, the UnitedStates signed an MoU with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia in January 2023, committing to support development of a productive supply chain from mining to assembly.
In February 2023, the European Union presented the Green Deal Industrial Plan, which has four pillars related to progress on net zero-related projects: faster permitting, financial support, enhanced skills, and open trade. The plan also includes provision for the creation of a Critical Raw Materials Act, the proposal for which was issued in March 2023, with a focus on security of supply, extraction and environmental standards, as well as recycling.
The faster permitting for facilities, including battery production, will be formalised via the proposed Net Zero Industry Act, providing simplified and predictable planning approvals. As well as loosening rules on state aid until 2025, the financial support package of the plan attempts to allow faster access to essential subsidies and loans, to compensate businesses for high energy prices, to help ensure liquidity, and to reduce electricity demand. The plan also aims to reskill workers affected by the green transition, and to establish Net Zero Industry Academies. Lastly, the trade element focuses on improving the resilience of the EU''s supply chains, opening trade with new partners and attracting private investment.
In March 2023, the European Union proposed the Net Zero Industry Act, which aims to meet 40% of the European Union''s needs for strategic net zero technologies with EU manufacturing capacity by 2030. These technologies explicitly include battery and storage technologies, and for batteries the aim is for nearly 90% of the European Union''s annual battery demand to be met by EU battery manufacturers, with a combined manufacturing capacity of at least 550GWh in 2030, in line with the objectives of the European Battery Alliance. These announcements came just as CO2 standards for car sales over 2030-2035 tightened under the Fit for 55 package.
The Automobile and Auto Component PLI scheme has two parts: the Champion OEM incentive scheme, which grants incentives for sales of advanced automotive technology vehicles (battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles) across all vehicle segments; and the Component Champion scheme, which provides incentives for sales of certain components for both ICE and electric vehicles. The budgetary outlay is INR260billion (USD3.2billion) over five years, and the scheme has been successful in attracting investments worth INR677billion (USD8.3billion), which will be spent over a period of five years. A total of 95 applicants had been approved under this scheme as of March 2022. In both schemes, the minimum domestic value-add requirement is 50%.
Recognition of the vital role of critical minerals in the EV transition has also catalysed policy action. As carmakers and battery manufacturers around the world race to secure supply as EV demand increases, governments are seeking to position themselves in global supply chains, with a focus on increasing domestic capacity. It will be important to ensure these new supply chains for critical minerals are ethical and environmentally sustainable into the future.
The European Union''s December 2022 proposed revisions to the EU Battery Directive introduce new rules for the production, recycling, and repurposing of batteries. The European Union also proposed the Critical Raw Materials Act in March 2023, which aims, by 2030, to achieve extraction capacity of 10% of the European Union''s annual consumption of strategic raw materials; processing capacity for 40%; and recycling capacity for 15%. Objectives also include diversifying the origin of imported materials to increase supply chain security and resilience, and improving the environmental sustainability of mineral-related activities.
In the United States, the importance of critical minerals and the preference for developing domestic capacity has been underlined by the stipulation under the IRA that half of the vehicle subsidy is dependent on meeting the critical mineral requirement.
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