Every few days, Bazlur Rashid Shawon spends hours waiting in line with his motorcycle to buy petrol. Six litres used to last him two weeks, but with many fuel stations limiting sales to two litres per customer, he has to queue up more often.
“The long hours waiting under the sun drain my energy and take away precious time from my busy days,” the 32-year-old pharmaceutical company employee told Climate Home News as he waited in a traffic jam on the way to work in the capital, Dhaka.
Bangladesh relies heavily on imports to meet its fuel needs and it has been badly affected by disruption in global energy markets since the start of the Iran war. Striving to stem demand for petrol and diesel, the government has ordered reduced working hours at offices and malls, while many fuel stations have been shut due to shortages.
The crisis could, however, give momentum to Bangladesh’s nascent efforts to ramp up electric transportation in the country of 175 million people, following in the footsteps of South Asian EV leaders such as Nepal.
Among the government’s energy-saving measures, it said it would scrap duties on imported electric buses for schools.
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In its latest national climate plan, Bangladesh says it wants electric cars to account for 30% of the market by 2035. By the same year, a quarter of the buses circulating on the capital’s roads should be electric, according to the country’s updated nationally determined contribution (NDC).
While the country has a long way to go on EV adoption, there are signs that the global oil shock triggered by the Middle East conflict has stirred interest among consumers.
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In the capital, Dhaka, dealers of electric cars, scooters and three-wheelers told Climate Home News they had seen a rise in sales and customer enquiries over the last month.
Mohammad Salauddin, who has been in the Dhaka e-bike business for 10 years, said demand was weak when he started: only one or two bikes a month from his showroom in the city’s Hazaribagh area. With the fuel crunch, sales have risen to about 20 bikes a month.
He has now expanded his business, setting up another showroom elsewhere in the city, and said demand is outpacing supply.
“The demand will only rise in the coming days as people see the benefits of electric transport,” he said.
South Asia’s EV laggard
But despite the optimism of EV retailers, Bangladesh’s electric transport ambitions face numerous challenges – from scant charging infrastructure and policy incentives to high purchase costs and hesitance among consumers.
Bangladesh is a laggard on EV adoption in South Asia. EVs account for less than 1% of new vehicle sales, much lower than in neighbouring India, where statistics put EV penetration at about 8%. In Nepal, electric vehicles now make up about three-quarters of new car sales.
Registered e-bikes are few and far between and electric cars remain a niche segment. Millions of electric three-wheelers operate on the roads, but most of them are unregistered.
Last year, the government slashed import duties on components for e-bikes manufacturing and drafted a national electric vehicle policy spelling out incentives for manufacturing and importing EVs. But the policy is still waiting to be approved.
Growth barriers
Even if government policies are fully implemented, EV adoption faces other hurdles in Bangladesh.
Fuwad Hossain Saddam, who works at Keraniganj on the outskirts of Dhaka, has an e-bike and says it is the best option for short trips, but not for longer journeys.
“For commuting to the office, taking children to parks, or going to the market for shopping – e-bike,” he said. “For long distances, petrol-powered transport is the way to go.”
“Petrol is unlimited, e-bike is limited,” he said, adding that his older model stretches to only about 50 kilometres (30 miles) on a full charge, with charging taking six to seven hours.
Lack of charging infrastructure is one of the biggest barriers to EV adoption in Bangladesh, which has only 112 formal EV charging stations, though the count varies depending on how charging points are defined, said Nayeem Hossain, head of EV sales at Trade Intercontinental.
Most EVs in the country use lead-acid batteries, as opposed to faster-charging and longer-lasting lithium-ion batteries, he said, suggesting that battery-swapping facilities at fuel stations would be a quick way to encourage EV usage and adoption.
“This could enable people to rapidly increase the range and mileage of their EVs,” he said.
Offering a subsidised charging rate for EVs could also spur take-up and tackle use of unauthorised electricity connections – commonly used by the country’s legions of unregistered electric three-wheelers.
High initial purchase costs also make EVs a distant dream for many would-be buyers in Bangladesh, where the average monthly wage is 18,000 taka (about $146).
Raja Chowdhury, 35, a businessman, has used an electric scooter for seven years. He said he was happy with his purchase, but added that it was not something everyone can afford.
“If the budget allows, choose lithium; if not, start with acid batteries and save to upgrade later,” he said.
Until upfront costs come down and charging becomes easier, many riders like Shawon will delay making the switch to electric.
“For the time being, waiting in line for fuel seems to be the only option for me,” Shawon said.
