Malaysian national car company Proton announced it has entered the Nepalese battery electric vehicle (BEV) market with the launch of its e.MAS 7 model, which was only launched in Malaysia in December.
The automaker is targeting the rapid growth in the country’s BEV segment, which it says has expanded more than ninefold in the last three years to account for around 73% of total vehicle sales. BEV sales in the country are understood to have increased to 10,794 units in 2024 from just 1,134 units in 2021, in line with the government’s Green Mobility Vision. Proton also pointed out that the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has pledged to build a network of over 300 charging stations across the country in the next three years.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The launch event was held in the country’s capital city Kathmandu and was attended by a number of Proton executives, including CEO Dr Li Chunrong. The automaker’s local distributor, Jagdamba Motors Pvt Ltd, was represented by executive director Akhil Gupta and managing director Sahli Agrawal, as well as by Shanker Lal Agrawal – chairman of its parent company Shanker Group.
Proton said it currently has three sales outlets operating in the country, but plans to expand the network to 12 by the end of the year.
