Doha
Qatar has signed contracts worth QR6 billion to create state-of-the-art infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs) in the country, Minister of Transport and Communications HE Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti said on Monday.
Talking to Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of an event to sign contracts relating to Qatar’s transformation to environmental-friendly vehicles and full switch to electric bus system in the country, the minister said the contracts include procuring thousands of electric buses from China’s Zhengzhou Yutong Group, establishing plant to manufacture electric vehicles , setting up electric bus depots and charging stations across Qatar.
The minister said that all buses to be used during the 2022 FIFA World Cup will be electric.
"We are also in the process of signing contracts to procure almost 200 electric taxis for Mowasalat next year," the minister said.
Mowasalat CEO Fahad Saad Al Qahtani, who also spoke to Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of the event, said that awarding of these contracts will ensure that at least 25 percent of public transport vehicles in Qatar are electric before the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.While we already have Doha Metro that completely runs on electricity, Qahtani said, many of the buses including the school buses in Qatar will be electric in the next two years.
“We are also working to have electric taxis in Mowasalat soon. We are in the process of procuring about 200 such taxis next year. Our aim is to completely transform to an environment-friendly transport system by 2030,” Qahtani said. QFZA CEO Lim Meng Hui told Qatar Tribune that China’s Zhengzhou Yutong Group is all set to set up an manufacturing plant for electric buses in one of the free zones in Qatar next year.
“We expect the manufacturing plant to deliver electric buses before the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup,” Hui said.
