KATHMANDU: Since the beginning of May, the Chobhar Dry Port in Kathmandu has seen a surge in electric vehicles (EVs), resulting in heavy congestion at the only such facility in the capital city.
The spike in imports follows growing speculation that taxes on EVs would be increased in the upcoming fiscal budget. In anticipation of a possible price hike, importers rushed to bring in large volumes of EVs, leading to a significant buildup at the dry port.
Most of these vehicles arrived through the Rasuwagadhi and Tatopani entry points along the Nepal-China border and were transported to Chobhar after customs clearance. Some of them were brought directly to the dry port for customs processing.
According to the Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board (NITDB), the customs yard at Chobhar currently has 1,450 vehicles, including 400 two-wheelers, from different brands.
Breakdown by Importers
Vehicles imported by 10 different importing companies are currently parked at the dry port.
Shangrila International Freight has imported 400 Hero motorcycles and 118 four-wheelers. The brand of these four-wheelers has not been disclosed.
CG Motors has parked 293 vehicles from brands including Aion V, Xpeng, Dayun, Avatar, and Neta at the customs yard.
MAW Vriddhi Motors has brought in 211 cars, including models from Deepal, Nammi and Seres.
Similarly, SPG Automobiles has imported 139 cars from Omoda and Jaecoo brands, while Shangrila Motors has brought 79 vehicles from Leapmotor and Zeekr.
Jagdamba Motors has brought in 123 Proton vehicles, while five vehicles imported by Pionner Moto Corp have also been parked at the customs yard.
NEV Nepal has brought in 72 DFSK Thee Go vans and one CHTC bus. Likewise, Pragyan Motors has imported five vans.
Cimex Inc has parked four BYD buses at the dry port.
