Stakeholders have called for the adoption of electric vehicles, or EVs, saying that they are cost-efficient and greener compared to Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles, which run on fossil fuels such as gasoline.
Totally or partially fueled with electricity, EVs are often considered to be the most sustainable form of motorised transportation. From an economic standpoint, EVs and hybrid vehicles provide cost savings as an incentive over traditional fossil fuel vehicles, they observed at a virtual event titled 'Pioneer EV Businesses in Bangladesh' aimed at creating awareness and promoting the pioneering EV-adoption cases in Bangladesh on Thursday, according to a press release.
“In the context of Bangladesh, EVs hold an answer to solving the power overcapacity conundrum, which can be mitigated through the adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles. According to the Bangladesh Power Development Board, only 40 per cent of the power generation capacity is currently being utilised in Bangladesh. Introducing EVs and hybrid vehicles in the country can reduce pressure on fossil fuel demand while raising little cost in power generation”.
Lightcastle Partners, a business consulting firm in Bangladesh, and Ricardo, a global strategic consulting firm, organised the virtual event, conducted from LightCastle’s Gulshan office.
Moderated by Mehad ul Haque, Project Manager & Senior Business Consultant of Lightcastle Partners, the event was part of the UK Government-funded ‘’Road to a Green Bangladesh‘’ project, which is surveying the local uptake of EVs in the current circumstances.
Mate Antosik, Programme Coordinator at Ricardo, shared the overview of the programme.
While giving welcome remarks and keynote presentation, Ivdad Ahmed Khan Mojlish, Co-founder & Managing Director of LightCastle Partners, stated, “We have been seeing the emergence of electric vehicles not just in European countries but in Asia too. We are hoping that Bangladesh will soon join this green revolution.”
Dr Fahreen Hannan, Founder, Dhaka Cast; Jakirul Islam, Senior Vice President, Bank Asia; Syed Saif (Founder and CEO, Lily; also spoke.
The event was told that a total of 30 Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) case studies were conducted to survey the potential of EV business in Bangladesh to specifically point out the challenges, prospects, and risks in implementing the EV business model in a country like Bangladesh.
Five prospective startups – Advanced Dynamics, JoBike, DhakaCast, Lily, and SOLshare – presented their interest and future plans as well as the possibility and benefits of nationwide EV implementation.
