Sesel Sa! January - March 2015 Jan - March 2015 | Page 74

1. What made you decide to undertake such
a venture?
The idea to introduce electric cars to Seychelles came
to me whilst visiting friends in Orlando, USA. Up
to that point I had never seen a street-legal buggy.
Electric cars we all knew of, but a fun open vehicle
that’s energy efficient, kind to the environment and
quiet had never been seen on public roads. La Digue
was my first objective - with its rapid development
and modernization, it was time to set up and find a
solution before we destroy the islands fragile beauty.

2. How is it working so far?

E-Cars Seychelles was created primarily to introduce
and educate residents on an alternative, e-friendly
transport solution. Once people see the cars and
understand the benefits, everyone is impressed. Our
work is far from over as we still have other brands and
models to introduce on Mahé and Praslin.

3. What were the major obstacles of set up?

Importation codes, obtaining road licenses and
getting insurance coverage for our cars are still some
of the larger challenges that we are still struggling
with. Hopefully this will improve in the near future
to enable everyone to benefit. It’s also a new way to
travel, so there’s that ‘unknown’ factor especially when
it comes to support and repairs.

5. What are your future goals and desires?

We have plans to build a large service center,
showroom and a after sales office on Mahe. We already

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SESEL SA! | JAN - MAR 2015 ISSUE NO. 6

have 10 vehicles in the country so the pressure is on
to get going.

6. How can the tourists or industry trade
assist you in your venture?

Demand dictates direction, by that I mean if more
tourists demand electric then local businesses such as
car hires will have no choice but to supply.

7. How do the cars work?

They are quite simple, you plug the vehicle into a
220 volt domestic socket whilst you sleep or sit in
the office. You treat it just like you would your mobile
phone. They can be used to drive over 50 kilometres
on 5.1 kilowatts per hour.
For every 100km you drive in your petrol powered car,
you save SCR 174 - which equates to an approximate
savings of SCR 696 per 400 km.

9. What is their shelf life?

The cars we have chosen are of the highest possible
quality, durability and reliability. The body work is
100% recyclable, made of aluminium and plastic.
Therefore, if driven correctly, they should last forever.
As for the batteries, we expect to see a life span of up
to 4 years, depending on your driving and charging
habits.

10. How do they save in comparison to a
normal car?

I drive 50 km on a single charge (average utility rate