University’s Electric Mobility Lab is converting ICE vehicles to meet sub-Saharan Africa’s needs

A team from Stellenbosch University’s newly launched Electric Mobility Lab, affiliated with the Faculty of Engineering, has proved that while it may not be possible to travel from Joburg to Cape Town via electric car, it is possible to travel even further on an electric motorbike.

The team arrived in Stellenbosch on 16 October after a 6,000km journey from Nairobi to the Cape using only solar power, which culminated in the launch of the Stellenbosch University Electric Mobility Lab, during which a retrofitted 65-seater electric bus was handed over to the Golden Arrow Bus Service.

The South African National Energy Development Institute, Stellenbosch University, Golden Arrow Bus Services, Rham Equipment, the Department of Science and Innovation, and the Department of Electricity and Energy are behind the project.

Other partners and collaborators include Roam Electric, Transaction Capital, the City of Cape Town, the Western Cape provincial government, Green Cape, Oxford University, and Reutlingen University, with funding from the World Bank and the German development agency GiZ.

Professor Thinus Booysen from the Faculty of Engineering and founder of the Electric Mobility Lab, explained at the launch that converting existing diesel buses shows how electric mobility can be integrated into South Africa’s transport network without the need for entirely new vehicle fleets.

“It’s a practical, cost-effective approach that also has significant environmental benefits.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dNloXwdI-8

The 2005 diesel bus underwent a complete retrofit, which meant its diesel engine, gearbox, and fuel tank were replaced with an electric motor, control electronics, and high-capacity batteries. 

Despite the significant mechanical transformation, the bus weighs the same as the original ICE model and has been certified as roadworthy. It has an estimated range of 200km. 

The prototype will now undergo extensive functional and performance testing to evaluate its suitability for daily public transport.

The bus conversion exemplifies the circular economy in action, Booysen added, by repurposing and upgrading existing vehicles instead of scrapping them, and it offers significant opportunities for reskilling automotive industry workers as the country shifts towards electric mobility.

Booysen told Daily Maverick that the lab has already done three conversions: the bus; a minibus; and a motorbike. 

“We took a Toyota Quantum minibus and converted that to electric, showing that it can be done, so we can do performance testing.”

More than half of the cost of an EV is from import duties and taxes, which is not sustainable. 

“The fact that more than half the cost of the vehicle is just getting it into the country means that there’s a huge opportunity for local production, so we [wanted to show we] can convert and give them a second lease on life.”

Another benefit of retrofitting is that it doesn’t require a new chassis, so once converted, the vehicle is capable of running for another 10 to 20 years on electricity. 

“From my perspective, one of the crucial things is we’re building the skills, so that we can make these vehicles locally, and we are protecting the few skills that we do have.”

The team behind Stellenbosch University’s ICE conversion lab are tailoring vehicles for Africa’s unique transport needs. (Photo: Supplied)

‘Scootch over’