Nepal, March 22 -- Petrol, diesel, electricity, hybrids. They are various forms of engines automobiles used to propel them forward. Few know that the first cars 150 years ago were actually battery-powered, but the Ford Model T overtook them.

Ever since the first vehicles were carried over Chitlang pass to their Rana owners in Kathmandu in the early 1920s, Nepalis have been fascinated by the traditional internal combustion engine that burns some form of liquid fuel.

But in the past five years, there has been a switch to battery-powered electric vehicles (BEVs). Better range and lower cost due to tax rebates made Nepal the second country after Norway last year to adopt EVs.

But there is another option for Nepal that predates the recent p...