EV news in Pakistan: what happened in October and early November 2026

Between 24 October and 5 November, a cement company, Airlink and Geely's new Pakistani partner all made EV moves. Meanwhile the government's own numbers showed electric bike production more than tripling in a year, and the policy that will set EV taxes for the next five years is still a draft.

This is the first of our monthly roundups of EV news in Pakistan. Each month we'll collect what happened, date it, say whether it's launched, announced or only proposed, and explain what it means if you own or are thinking of buying an electric car or bike. This edition covers 1 October to 5 November 2026.

Thatta Cement plans to import small Chinese EVs (5 November)

Status: announced. Thatta Cement's board has approved investing in a wholly owned subsidiary to enter the EV business, according to a stock exchange filing reported by Business Recorder (Business Recorder, November 2026). The subsidiary will start by importing completely built-up electric cars from China, aimed at the affordable, compact end of the market, and may move into local assembly later. The filing names no brand, model, price, investment amount or timeline.

What it means for you. A company openly aiming at small, affordable EVs is the part worth watching for anyone priced out of today's EVs. Set any eventual price against our table of current EV prices. Until a brand and a price appear, though, it's a plan on paper.

Airlink launches AirV electric bikes (5 November)

Status: launched. Air Link Communication, known as Airlink, has launched AirV, an electric bike brand with 11 models across six series (Business Recorder, November 2026). The bikes use lithium batteries, with a range of up to 200 km depending on the model, and production is being set up in phases at Airlink's facility in the Sundar Green Special Economic Zone in Lahore. The company is aiming for about 95 percent local content within two to three years, and it plans to offer buy-now-pay-later through its Airfin arm. Business Recorder's report gave no prices.

What it means for you. Another big name in e-bikes, with its own financing arm, should mean more choice and more instalment options. If you're comparing what's already on sale, our electric motorcycle price list is the place to start, and charging an e-bike at home comes to about Rs 1,800 a month for 40 km a day, by our sums.

Electric bike production more than tripled, but senators flagged gaps (3 November)

Status: reported data. Pakistan produced 210,268 electric two- and three-wheelers in FY2025-26, up from 59,756 the year before, according to Engineering Development Board figures given to the Senate Standing Committee on Industries and reported by Arab News (Arab News, November 2026). More than 85 companies hold licences, and the EDB put cumulative production capacity above 290,000 units.

The same hearing aired the problems. Senator Anusha Rehman said only one public charging station, at Bhera on the M-2, had been confirmed as operational; the EDB's submission gave no count of its own. A manufacturer told the committee that locally assembled chargers face duties and taxes of up to 52 percent because of how they're classified, and Rehman said she had asked the FBR to reclassify them at 1 percent. That is a request, not a decision. Committee chairman Saleem Mandiwala said incentives should depend on companies having plants running by set deadlines.

An official cited a target of at least 3,000 charging stations, a negotiated charging tariff of Rs 40 a unit, about 18 installations under way and 40 sites identified along the Peshawar-Karachi motorway. The station target and motorway sites are still plans. Our guide to public EV charging stations covers what's licensed and running now.

What it means for you. Pakistan's EV shift is happening in volume on two and three wheels. The charger duty question matters to car owners too, since cheaper locally assembled chargers would lower the cost of a home or business installation.

Geely arrives through Bestway (24 October)

Status: launched, no prices. Bestway Group unveiled three Geely models on Saturday 24 October: the EX2, a compact electric hatchback; the EX5, an electric SUV; and the Starray EM-i (Business Recorder, October 2026; Dawn, October 2026). Prices, booking dates and final specifications are to be announced later.

The first cars will be imported while the former Proton plant at Port Qasim, 24.71 acres with capacity for up to 25,000 vehicles a year, is prepared for local assembly. Bestway aims to have locally assembled Geelys on the road next year, Business Recorder reported, and plans a charging network through Bestway Renewable Technologies, with no size or timing given.

The reports don't agree on what the Starray EM-i is. Business Recorder calls it a plug-in hybrid SUV, while Dawn describes range-extended EV technology. The two work differently and, under the draft auto policy, would be taxed differently, so we're treating it as a plug-in hybrid, as Business Recorder does, until Bestway publishes a spec sheet. If that distinction is new to you, our PHEV vs EV explainer sets it out.

What it means for you. A new brand with an electric hatchback and a local plant adds competition. Wait for the price list before deciding, and check which tax rate a Starray invoice carries.

Policy, in brief

Auto Policy 2026-31 (20 October). Status: proposed. The Prime Minister approved a final draft with 1 percent sales tax on battery EVs, 6 percent on range-extenders and 9 percent on plug-in hybrids (Express Tribune, October 2026). It still needs the IMF, the cabinet and parliament; each step of its approval is tracked in a separate post.

The IMF and EV sales tax. ARY and Dunya News reported the PM-approved draft as keeping 1 percent on battery EVs instead of the 18 percent the IMF reportedly wants, a demand that rests on unnamed sources (ARY News, October 2026; Dunya News, October 2026). We found no minister on the record rejecting the IMF, and what that fight could mean for prices is covered separately.

Petrol. OGRA now sets petrol prices almost every working day, and petrol is Rs 362.00 a litre from 5 November 2026 (Dawn, November 2026); why petrol changes daily explains the formula and what it means per kilometre against an EV.

EV news in Pakistan to watch in November

• BYD's Gharo plant. BYD's Danish Khaliq told Arab News, in a report published on 23 October, that it will be commissioned by the end of the year, at 25,000 units a year in its first phase (Arab News, October 2026). The date has slipped before.
• Geely's price list, and a clear answer on the Starray EM-i's powertrain.
• The FBR and charger duties. Whether the request to cut the rate on locally assembled chargers to 1 percent goes anywhere.
• The auto policy's next step, whether that's the IMF, the cabinet or a finance bill.
• The end of the refinery formula's 30-day window, which could move petrol prices again.

If you already drive an EV and want to charge away from home in the meantime, EVDost lists chargers that hosts share, and you can sort them by best price or nearest. Our next roundup will follow in early December.

Sources

• Business Recorder, Thatta Cement to enter EV segment (November 2026): brecorder.com
• Business Recorder, Airlink launches AirV (November 2026): brecorder.com
• Arab News, electric bike production and charging hurdles (November 2026): arabnews.pk
• Business Recorder, Geely enters Pakistan through Bestway (October 2026): brecorder.com
• Dawn, Bestway launches Geely Auto (October 2026): dawn.com
• Arab News, auto policy savings and BYD's Gharo plant (October 2026): arabnews.pk
• Express Tribune, PM okays 1% sales tax on battery EVs (October 2026): tribune.com.pk
• ARY News, auto policy approved, IMF proposal rejected (October 2026): arynews.tv
• Dunya News, auto policy 2026-31 approved (October 2026): dunyanews.tv
• Dawn, petrol price from 5 November 2026: dawn.com