Exploring the Feasibility of Adopting the Chinese Electric Mobility Framework in Saudi Arabia

One of the critical milestones under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 is to achieve net-zero emissions by the end of 2060. Under the prevailing situation, CO2 emissions from combustible fuels totaled 534.68 MtCO2 in 2023, accounting for a 1.5% share in global emissions, from the Kingdom. Additionally, it was noted that 27% of total emissions are contributed by the transportation sector only. To mitigate this situation, from policy to practice, several measures are essential to achieve the ambitious targets of net-zero emissions. This paper takes a significant market player in the e-mobility sector, i.e, China, as a benchmark to evaluate the impact of adopting the e-mobility framework in the Saudi Arabian context. The potential of replicating the Chinese e-mobility model is analyzed using qualitative and quantitative data within the scope of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). Key factors such as policy, governmental support, technology, enforcement, and impact analysis under the Chinese e-mobility model are explored. Subsequently, based on the benchmark analysis under the MCDA approach, the feasibility of replicating the model in the Saudi Arabian context is investigated. The results of the MCDA, based on qualitative and quantitative analyses, indicate that replicating the Chinese e-mobility model in Saudi Arabia will remain a notable challenge, given domestic constraints across technical and non-technical areas.