Nigeria's Electric Vehicle Market Poised for Major Boom in 2026

2 LAGOS – Nigeria’s electric vehicle (EV) market is set for accelerated growth in 2026, as industry executives project rising adoption driven by higher fuel costs, supportive policy signals, and increasing private sector investments. This is according to executives of EV distributors and assemblers operating across Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The executives said that customer inquiries more than doubled in 2025, suggesting that 2026 could represent a tipping point for broader adoption among private buyers and commercial fleet operators. Speaking on the sector’s outlook, Roxettes Group Chairman Dr. Kaycee Orji said the company, through Roxettes Motors, has deliberately championed electric vehicle adoption in Nigeria for several years, producing electric, hybrid, and internal combustion engine vehicles. According to Orji, China’s aggressive transition to electric vehicles as a clear indication of where the global automotive industry is headed. “China is migrating fully by 2030. They have already achieved about 70 to 80 percent of that transition—almost 90 percent,” Orji said, adding that ICE vehicles are expected to be phased out entirely in China by the end of the decade. He warned that without a clearly defined EV transition strategy, Nigeria risks becoming a dumping ground for used ICE vehicles from countries enforcing strict phase-out timelines. “The idea is to send a signal that Nigeria is not a dumping ground for used ICE vehicles from countries that are moving away from them,” he explained. Central to accelerating adoption, Orji said, is the proposed Electric Vehicle Transition and Green Mobility Bill, 2025, which he described as largely comprehensive in addressing key barriers to EV uptake.