Did you know the history of EV in Nepal began as early as 1975? 

Yes! Long before electric vehicles became a global trend, Nepal was already experimenting with clean, green transport. In this article, we’ll take a journey through the history of electric vehicles in Nepal, the struggles, the big comeback, and how Nepal is now one of the fastest-growing EV markets in the world. 

The Early Days: The Beginning of Electric Vehicles in Nepal 

The history of EV in Nepal started in 1975, when a trolleybus line gifted by China began operating in Kathmandu. Powered entirely by Nepal’s abundant hydropower, this marked the country’s first step toward sustainable public transport. 

By 1993, Safa Tempos electric three-wheelers became a common sight in Kathmandu’s streets. These EVs were not just eco-friendly but also socially empowering. Most Safa Tempos were driven by women, providing thousands of rides without contributing to air pollution. 

👉 Fun Fact: Safa Tempos made Nepal one of the world’s earliest champions of women-led, clean transport systems. 

Struggles and a Pause in Nepal’s EV Journey 

However, the electric vehicle history in Nepal wasn’t always smooth. 

By the 2000s, diesel vehicles dominated the 4-wheeler sector. With more diesel cars/microvans on the road, Nepal’s EV momentum slowed down, air pollution worsened, and the vision of clean mobility nearly disappeared. 

The turning point came with the 2015 fuel crisis, which forced Nepal to reconsider its dependence on fossil fuels. By 2018, thanks to growing hydropower, electricity became much cheaper than petrol, sparking a revival in Nepal’s EV sector. Early EVs like the Mahindra Reva and BYD e6 symbolized the comeback. 

The EV Boom in Nepal 

Fast forward to today, we can see Electric vehicles wherever we go. This goes without saying but Nepal is one of the world’s fastest-growing EV markets. 

• From just ~236 electric vehicles in 2019–20 to over 13,000 by 2023–24. 

• A staggering 76% of new cars sold in Nepal are now electric, making Nepal second only to Norway! 

• Charging stations are being developed nationwide to support this growth. 

• Nepal’s target: 90% of all new car sales to be electric by 2030. 

With the EV revolution, we are in the middle of a transport revolution that promises a better tomorrow.  

Challenges Ahead and Aloi’s Role in Nepal’s EV Story 

Even with this progress, challenges remain. For many micro-entrepreneurs, buying a 4-wheeler EV is still difficult due to high upfront costs, rough road conditions, limited financing options, and lack of charging stations.  

That’s where Aloi steps in. 

We’ve been working in the EV sector for more than 6 years, helping micro-entrepreneurs get access to easy financing and support. Our goal is simple: make the EV revolution accessible for everyone 

Because a green future should be shared by everyone.  

Conclusion: Driving Nepal’s EV Future 

The history of EV in Nepal is a story of resilience, innovation, and leadership. From trolleybuses in 1975 to Safa Tempos in the ’90s, from struggles in the 2000s to today’s EV boom, Nepal has proven it can lead the way in sustainable transport. 

This World EV Day 2025 on 9 September, let’s celebrate how far Nepal has come and how much further we can go together.  

#HistoryOfEVInNepal #EVNepal #AloiNepal #BijuliPower 

Nepal’s transport sector is changing, and the future is shifting to electric. In partnership with the Sustainable Electric Transport for Nepal (SET4NPL) project, Aloi Private Limited is proud to play one of the vital roles in the transition from diesel to electric public transport. As the project’s digital solution partner, Aloi makes the financial process smooth, transparent and reliable helping drive a greener and more sustainable Nepal. 

With our secure and transparent financing system, we’re making it easier for public transport operators to access subsidies and financing for green mobility.  

What is SET4NPL? 

SET4NPL (Sustainable Electric Transport for Nepal) is an initiative supported by the Mitigation Action Facility (MAF), GIZ, and GGGI. 

SET4NPL project is transforming public transport by making it greener, smarter, and more accessible. With Support Packages for 3,500 electric mini- and microbuses, public transport operators can now benefit from tailored financial and technical assistance to shift toward electric mobility. 

Beyond vehicles, SET4NPL is also introducing digital innovations such as mobile applications, e-ticketing, and modern management systems to enhance convenience for both operators and passengers. To further strengthen Nepal’s EV ecosystem, the project is expanding the network of public fast-charging stations and integrating advanced payment solutions for station operators and EV users. 

What does SET4NPL provide?  

SET4NPL is a project for Public Transport Operators (PTOs), following are the benefits a PTO can get after involving in the project:  

• Pre-approved electric minibuses/microbuses from recognized SET4NPL vendors are eligible for purchase and financing. 

• Up to NPR 14 Lakhs subsidy, including seat subsidy and first-month EMI coverage 

• Affordable loans through partner banks 

• Additional NPR 70,000 grant when scrapping old diesel vehicles (Scrap certificate required) 

Vehicle enhancements under the project 

Each electric vehicle comes with:  

• GPS Tracker Module 

• E-ticketing machine  

• LED route display board  

• Immobilizer (for security)  

• One emergency or slow charger (Optional) 

• Project sticker  

Why work with Aloi? 

Choosing Aloi means choosing a reliable partner: 

• Aloi is in collaboration with leading vendors 

• Fast, transparent, and efficient processes 

• Manage the overall loan and subsidy process 

• Strong coordination with cooperatives and local committees 

• Priority support for women entrepreneurs and drivers 

How to Apply for SET4NPL with Aloi 

Joining the program is simple: 

1. Choose your preferred electric vehicle vendor 

2. Contact Aloi then partner banks 

3. Prepare the required documents (Aloi will assist you) 

4. Scrap your old diesel vehicle (if applicable)  

5. Start the loan process 

6. Receive your new electric vehicle 

Who Can Apply? 

The program is open to: 

• Registered Public Transport Operators (PTOs) 

• Individuals with valid route permits 

• Anyone interested in purchasing electric public transport vehicles 

Powering Nepal’s Green Future 

With Aloi as the payment partner of SET4NPL, switching to electric public transport has never been easier. Together with our partners, we are driving sustainable mobility and shaping a cleaner tomorrow for Nepal. 

Once upon a time, Nepal had the leading zero carbon emission public electric-vehicle industry. Yes, that’s a fairy tale now because the amount of carbon emissions by vehicles in Nepal doesn’t tell us we are even near contributing to the zero carbon emission. Safa-tempo started in the mid-1990s and was booming and blooming. It was locally manufactured but not anymore which shows how economical it would have been. At the time when safa-tempo was introduced, it required two sets of 12 acid- batteries which needed to be imported from California. This was one of the drawbacks along with harsh government policies in support of diesel micro-buses that were imported at that time. Once a world-leading commercial electric vehicle, safa-tempo was facing its downfall.

According to the safa-tempo association, there are a total of 714 safa-tempos in the valley right now. Some safa-tempos are still running and some are in the garage rusting. Due to government regulations, safa-tempo owners are currently facing an unanticipated crisis where they are required to pay eight years of income tax at once and if seen running without the proper renewed document then they are being fined for that too. The government denied providing any discounts on the taxes. In addition to that, custom duty was increased from 10 to 40 percent and the excise duty was fixed at the highest rate i.e. 80 percent during the budget for the Fiscal Year 2077/78. But recently, after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, the Cabinet decided to reduce the taxes by between 25% to 80% depending on the capacity of the vehicles, although the VAT and excise tax have been retained. Despite his own government’s commitment two years ago to make 20% of vehicles electric-powered by 2020, in his annual budget speech in May, Khatiwada increased the excise tax of only 10% on battery cars to 40%-60%, and another 60% customs duty. These fluctuations and lack of support from government policies have discouraged a lot of micro-entrepreneurs of the electric vehicle industry.

Present might seem difficult for safa-tempos but there is a possibility that it can turn around the current situation into a positive one in the near future. Aloi as a digital token loan service provider is trying to coordinate with the safa-tempo association helping safa tempo drivers have easy access to finance via digital token, build their capacity and help build multiple models of income. More companies like us and the government itself must invest in electric vehicles like safa-tempo. Electric vehicle industry like safa-tempo needs supports from the government more than ever now just to exist. Once we were able to manufacture safa-tempo so why not do it again! Why not manufacture the batteries locally which are required to run the safa-tempo? Why not make once a pioneering country in the commercial public electric vehicle industry, a pioneer again?

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COVID-19/Lockdown Impact

The lockdown imposed in Nepal due to COVID-19 is affecting everyone’s livelihoods. The daily-wage workers like the safa-tempo drivers are the ones most affected by this lockdown. We interviewed some of the daily wage workers we work with through our product BijuliPower. It has been over 80 days now since the lockdown was imposed with a strict rule of social distancing and complete stop on public transportation. This impacted our safa tempo drivers adversely with no means of income. They don’t have any income sources to pay their loans, rather they are struggling to survive in Kathmandu with basic food supply and rent issues, as many are from areas outside of the Kathmandu Valley.

Some women drivers were able to go back to their villages which saved them a lot of money. Unfortunately, some couldn’t go back due to the sudden nature of the lockdown. One safa tempo driver that went back home felt like she didn’t fit in with the village lifestyle as she is used to living in the city. When they decided to come back to the city, her landlord wouldn’t allow her due to worries about covid transmission. This is sad for the safa tempo driver but it’s also a measure of precaution that the landlord had to take.

As we talked more, they shared with us their concern for their child’s education as everything is now online but without a daily wage, she couldn’t afford the internet fees. With so many urgent priorities, they don’t want to have to worry about education, but this is still causing a lot of stress. Regarding their business in the safa tempo industry, most women were hesitant and anxious because so far the public transportation business seems risky even once the lockdown lifts.

One woman driver shared she had to take responsibilities for 3 families with zero savings and solely with the income from safa tempo. Her husband has three wives including her and he is currently jobless. Right now, their sole income source is gone. This is the reason why this safa tempo driver says she would hesitate to take a future loan for upgrading the battery of her tempo. An increase in the Electric Vehicle taxes by the Nepal government has the safa tempo drivers worried about their future in this industry also.

To help these women in crisis Aloi launched a crowd funding campaign for 55 families of safa tempo drivers who were struggling for basic food supplies. We successfully surpassed the targeted number of families and have helped 196 families with 301 food packages distributed so far. We hope to help these families in this crucial situation brought by COVID-19.

Our BijuliPower campaign was successfully launched at the third iteration of OWN IT conference of Woman Lead Nepal on February 29, 2020. Through our transportation partnership with the conference, we had a great kick start to BijuliPower which provides private hire services for events like this. As OWN It conference is there to fill the gaps between the female leaders and the aspiring young women leaders, there wouldn’t have been any better summit than this for us because we believe in uplifting women leaders and microentrepreneurs like our Safa Tempo women drivers.

We were overwhelmed by the participation of more than 200 young leaders from different fields. The participants included our well-known female leaders like Miss Nepal 2002 and entrepreneur, Malvika Subba. As our campaign focuses on promoting clean and green transportation services she quoted:

“if you use the electric-powered vehicle like Safa Tempo, you will be supporting a clean green environment”

–Malvika Subba

Likewise, the executive director of Woman Lead Nepal Hima Bista, herself encouraged our campaign by saying BijuliPower sets an example through the change we’re trying to bring from the grass-root level by empowering women drivers and advocating a clean green environment. Kudos to the team of Woman Lead Nepal on conducting an impactful event like OWN IT conference, we were honoured to be a part of it.

Thank you to Women LEAD Nepal for hosting a very successful OWN IT conference on 29 February 2020. We were honoured to be there to launch our BijuliPower product that helps events, individuals, and offices hire private safa tempos to provide transportation services. Here are some photos from the event:

GEM, through BijuliPower, will be providing clean and green transportation before and after the conference.

On Saturday, February 29, 2020, Women LEAD Nepal will hold OWN IT Nepal, a one-day leadership summit for young women. OWN IT Nepal seeks to bridge the gap between female leaders of the 21st century and the young women who admire them by producing accessible events for young women of all demographics—not just those who can afford to pay their way.Through OWN IT Nepal, we aim to change the narratives around what it means to be a woman in Nepali society, promote and discuss intersectional feminist values, and ultimately to bring together young women who are eager to change Nepal through art, business, journalism, politics, public service and more.The first OWN IT Summit was held at Georgetown University in 2014. 2020 OWN IT would mark the summit’s third iteration in Nepal.We had over 200 young women and men, between the ages of 18 to 26 years, participate in OWN IT Nepal last year. OWN IT Nepal saw the youth come together to celebrate women’s leadership and to learn from current female leaders. This year too, we will have amazing speakers who inspire to change.

Date: Saturday, Feb 29, 2020
Time: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM
Venue: Ageno: The Hestia, Dhobighat, LalitpurIf you have any queries, please contact ownit@women-lead.org!