EV vs Petrol in Lagos — The Real Monthly Cost
8 scenarios · 1,500km/month basis · maintenance · depreciation · payback period
The EV vs petrol math has flipped in Lagos. Petrol at ₦1,320/litre puts a 1,500km monthly drive at around ₦198,000. The same distance in a typical 60kWh EV charged from home solar costs ₦11,500 — a 94% drop. Even charging from NEPA Band A at full rate (₦209.50/kWh), the EV burns ₦52,500 — still 73% less. This page breaks down all 8 charging scenarios by real cost.
| Scenario | ₦/kWh | Per month | Per year | vs petrol |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home charging (Solar — after install) | — | ₦0 | ₦0 | -100% |
| Home charging (Band A electricity) | ₦209.5 | ₦20,950 | ₦251.4K | -93% |
| Public AC charging | ₦275 | ₦27,500 | ₦330.0K | -90% |
| Public DC fast charging | ₦500 | ₦50,000 | ₦600.0K | -82% |
| Home charging (Solar — amortized) | — | ₦75,000 | ₦900.0K | -74% |
| Petrol car (Toyota Corolla) | — | ₦158,400 | ₦1.9M | -44% |
| Petrol SUV (Toyota RAV4) | — | ₦217,800 | ₦2.6M | -24% |
| Generator (2.5kVA, 6hrs/day) | — | ₦285,120 | ₦3.4M | baseline |
1,500km is typical Lagos monthly driving. Petrol assumption: 10km/litre at ₦1,320/L. EV assumption: 60kWh battery, 5km/kWh, charged per scenario.
Maintenance, depreciation, total cost
Fuel is only part of the picture. EV maintenance runs ₦80K-₦150K/year vs ₦300K-₦600K for comparable petrol cars — no oil changes, no spark plugs, no timing belt, no fuel pump, no exhaust system. Brake pads last 3-4× longer because regen braking handles most of the work.
Depreciation is the other quiet win. EVs with healthy batteries hold value better than petrol equivalents — the Lagos used EV market is still thin but recent BYD and Tesla resales retain 70-80% of new price after 3 years vs 50-60% for petrol SUVs.
When the EV pays back the upfront premium
Take a ₦25M EV vs ₦18M petrol equivalent (₦7M premium). At ₦145K/month fuel savings (NEPA Band A) the payback is 48 months. At ₦186K/month (home solar) it''s 38 months. Add maintenance savings of ~₦35K/month and the payback drops to 32-40 months — well within the typical Lagos ownership cycle.
BYD, MG, Tesla, Innoson. Prices from ₦9M (used Leaf) to ₦60M (Tesla).
Solar + EV can drop your transport cost by up to 87% vs petrol.