Egypt’s Abou Ghaly Motors is introducing Chinese automaker Geely’s Geometry C electric vehicle (EV) to the local market, according to a company statement. The EV will cover up to 550 km on a full charge with some 201 horsepower, saving motorists some 80% in fuel and running costs when compared with traditional vehicles, the statement adds. No timeline for the rollout in Egypt and MENA was disclosed.

Abou Ghaly plans to start assembling Geely EVs in Egypt this year, the firm’s group chief operating officer Tamer Kotb told Enterprise AM on Saturday. Geely will provide the know-how and technical expertise, while Abou Ghaly will cover the initial investment cost and take charge of marketing, distribution and sales, he said. The local automaker is in negotiations with Geely to use Egypt as an export hub for the Chinese automaker’s EVs to Africa, he added.

Abou Ghaly thinks Egypt is ready for EV assembly: “Talking to leaders in the green-industry ecosystem during the Enterprise Climate X Forum in December reinforced our belief that the Egyptian market is ready for EVs,” Kotb said. The company has been talking to “Geely and other international EV automakers about importing and even assembling their EV cars in Egypt and trying to convince them that local demand and the infrastructure are up to par,” he added.

And an EV charging infrastructure is taking shape: Local renewable energy player Infinity has built at least 115 charging stations so far in the country as part of a plan with the government to set up 6k vehicle charging points at 3k stations across Egypt.

Abou Ghaly is not the only player with local EV assembly plans: Egypt-based Al Mansour Automotive — one of the world’s largest dealers of General Motors vehicles — hopes to start assembling EVs in Egypt in 2023, with plans to produce 15k EVs in Egypt by 2025.

Could we see locally assembled EVs hitting Egyptian streets by 2024? Egypt is supporting Abou Ghaly and other private secretary players with incentives to get the EV industry off the ground, Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad said at the launch event of Geely’s Geometry C, without disclosing the specifics of its support package. The minister expects the first locally-assembled EVs to roll off production lines in 2024.