Ruto unveils Sh390bn Geely electric mobility plan

Audio By Vocalize

President William Ruto has welcomed a proposed Sh390 billion investment by Endelevu Enterprise Corporation and China’s Geely Auto Group to establish an electric mobility manufacturing and assembly ecosystem in Kenya.

Speaking at State House, Nairobi, during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government and Endelevu, Ruto said the investment would position Kenya as a regional hub for clean mobility while creating thousands of jobs.

The proposed project will include an assembly plant with an annual capacity of 50,000 four-wheel vehicles and another facility capable of producing 100,000 two-wheelers and light-mobility vehicles annually.

The investment plan also includes 1,000 solar-powered charging hubs and a digital platform that can manage up to 100,000 green vehicles.

Ruto said the project is expected to create about 2,000 direct jobs and more than 20,000 indirect jobs through suppliers, logistics companies and other service providers. The project is also expected to create 80,000 additional opportunities in fleet management, operations, and related services.

“We have paid for both in hard currency. And with every shipment, we have exported jobs that should have been created here. We are determined to change that equation,” Ruto said.

He said the project was part of the Government's broader strategy to reduce reliance on imported fuel and vehicles while increasing local manufacturing and value addition.

He said electricity consumed in charging electric vehicles increased from 2.92 million kilowatt-hours in 2024 to 8.43 million kWh in 2025, representing a 188 per cent rise.

According to Ruto, Kenya's reliance on renewable energy gives the country an advantage in developing electric mobility, with vehicles potentially powered by geothermal, wind, solar and hydroelectric power.

“When we import fuel, we import price shocks. When we generate our own power, we generate our own stability,” he said.

Ruto said the Government had taken several measures to encourage investment in electric mobility, including launching the National Electric Mobility Policy in February 2026.

He also cited his May 22 directive granting duty-free importation of the first 100,000 electric vehicles into Kenya and the Government's order for 3,000 electric vehicles for security and administration officers.

The President said the partnership with Geely and Endelevu should go beyond assembling vehicles for the Kenyan market and instead target the wider East African and African markets.

Vehicles manufactured in Kenya and meeting East African Community Rules of Origin requirements will be able to access the regional market, he said.

“A Memorandum is a framework. It is not the finish line. We must move quickly from signature to definitive agreements, from agreements to groundbreaking, and from groundbreaking to production,” he said.

Geely Automobile, which Ruto described as a Fortune Global 500 company based in China, has annual revenues of about $50 billion and operates across 88 countries and regions.

The partnership with Endelevu Enterprise Corp Mobility will cover electric vehicle manufacturing and assembly, charging infrastructure, and related value-chain services.