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Bolivia’s fuel shortages and ‘junk gasoline’ drive a surge in electric cars
Electric vehicle registrations rose from 500 to 3,352 in five years as fuel shortages and higher gasoline prices pushed Bolivians to switch.
- Amid fuel shortages and skyrocketing prices, Bolivians are increasingly abandoning fossil fuel-powered cars for electric vehicles after President Rodrigo Paz repealed long-standing fuel subsidies in December, effectively doubling gasoline costs.
- Former President Luis Arce maintained subsidies costing more than $2 billion annually, while the 'junk gasoline' scandal involving contaminated fuel from Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos triggered strikes and official resignations.
- Lawyer Ever Vera, 54, invested more than $36,000 to eliminate fuel search time, while Indigenous artisan Huanca imported a Chinese electric car to transport his family and alpaca wool for his weaving workshop.
- President Paz eliminated import tariffs on automobiles, multiplying importers and vehicle availability, yet electrician Marcelo Laura identified a charging niche because only three public stations serve El Alto and La Paz's more than 1.6 million residents.
- Electromobility expert Freddy Koch of Swisscontact reports exponential growth in electric vehicle adoption and predicts the total number could triple in as little as two to three years.
Insights by Ground AI
27 Articles
27 Articles
Tired of recurring problems in getting gasoline, Simón Huanca decided to import an electric car from China to transport his family and the alpaca wool he uses in his fabric workshop in the highest city of Bolivia.
Coverage Details
Total News Sources27
Leaning Left10Leaning Right3Center10Last UpdatedBias Distribution44% Left, 43% Center
Bias Distribution
- 44% of the sources lean Left, 43% of the sources are Center
44% Left
L 44%
C 43%
13%
Factuality
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