Zarqa Free Zone sees rise in electric vehicle clearances

AMMAN — President of the Jordan Free Zone Investor Commission (JFZIC) Mohammad Bustanji on Sunday announced the customs clearance of 24,000 vehicles during the first half of 2022 at the Zarqa Free Zone, compared with the same period in 2021. 

Bustanji revealed that 7,628 gasoline vehicles were cleared during the first half of 2022, compared with 8,846 vehicles during the same period of  2021, and 4,780 diesel vehicles were cleared in the first half of 2022, compared with 5,198 vehicles in the first half of 2021, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

He also announced that 4,457 hybrid vehicles were cleared during the first half of 2022, compared with 7,933 vehicles for the same period of 2021. 

Also, 7,054 electric vehicles were cleared, compared with 2,285 vehicles for the same period in 2021.

Bustanji said that 19,158 vehicles were re-exported from the Zarqa Free Zone during the first half of 2022, compared with 22,928 vehicles in the first half of 2021.

A “clear growth” in the customs clearance of electric vehicles is evident, compared to the decline in the clearance of gasoline, diesel and hybrid vehicles, he added. 

This increase is due to a “trend urging people to use electric vehicles, as they are economical and long-lasting”, Bustanji said. 

The global market has witnessed a great fluctuation in supplying vehicles to importing markets due to a decrease of production, in addition to the rise in shipping costs and the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, he noted.

Bustanji also said that the Chinese market has become a major supplier of electric vehicles and related technologies, highlighting the pressure on factories to develop electric vehicles at a large scale.