Bolivian EV startup hopes tiny car will make it big in lithium-rich country

By CARLOS VALDEZ

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — The municipality of La Paz, Bolivia, is using a small fleet of tiny electric cars to bring doctors to patients’ homes living in the suburbs of the capital city. The cars, which are the size of a golf cart and shaped like a box, move no faster than 35 mph and can travel 50 miles before a recharge. They are manufactured by Quantum Motors, the sole producer of EVs in the South American country. But while the company hopes to bring electric vehicles to the masses, they have sold only 350 units in the four years since they launched. In Bolivia, cheap, subsidized gasoline is the norm, even though the country has the world’s largest reserves of lithium —a key component in vehicle batteries.