Electric car prices could drop soon – here’s why.
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The gasoline crisis hit after many analysts predicted last year that the cost of electric vehicles would plummet in the next few years, and then the government slashed Electric Vehicle subsidies. So what’s next for electric vehicles?
At the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow last November, many analysts predicted that the cost of electric vehicles would drop significantly in the coming years.
Then, in December, the government cut subsidies for Electric Vehicle buyers.
So will they be much cheaper soon? In short, Yes. here’s why.
The price of battery electric vehicles has dropped significantly and is expected to catch up with gasoline or diesel vehicles between 2025 and 2027 – and become cheaper soon thereafter.
According to New Automotive, a research group that aims to accelerate the switch to electric vehicles, the average motorist could save £700 a year in fuel costs by switching.
Part of the price drop is due to advances in batteries, which will continue to decline, and also due to automakers producing more cars for the mass market.
“International agreements on climate change mean car companies understand that there is a global transition to clean transport under way,” said Ben Nelmes from New Automotive.
“They are looking to increase the number of electric models they sell to secure a place in the future car market,” he said.
Now that the auto industry is designing electric vehicles from the ground up — rather than tweaking existing design structures called “platforms” — they’re improving performance and cost.
The government plans to set targets for manufacturers to sell more electric vehicles, which will help drive down prices further.
Currently, the auto industry is calling for increased incentives for buyers until the price of electric cars matches that of combustion-engine vehicles.
In 2019, many Electric Vehicles were acquired by commercial fleets (taxi or rental car companies, or companies that own company cars) after the government provided tax breaks for Electric Vehicles.
These companies tend to sell these vehicles after two to three years, so they are close to entering the used market.
The UK loves buying used cars. About 7.5 million used cars changed hands last year, compared with 2 million new cars.
Britain wants to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.
Electric car prices could drop soon – here’s why.
In the UK, around two-thirds of people have a driveway where they can charge their electric car at home.
But “it is critical that local authorities play an active role in ensuring that chargers are rolled out in residential areas without driveways to allow equal access to the benefits of Electric Vehicle ownership,” Mr Nelmes said.
Long-distance charging remains a challenge. The auto industry is asking the government to invest in infrastructure, and Shell has committed to installing 50,000 charging stations by 2050.
The latest electric vehicle models have increased range to about 300 miles, and new apps can tell you where charging stations are, how much they cost, and whether anyone is using them.
Batteries require minerals like lithium and cobalt.
Greg Archer, of the Department of Transport and Environment, said: “All the raw materials needed for the rapid adoption of electric vehicles are available in sufficient quantities, and the global reserves far exceed the cumulative future demand.”
Most of the world’s lithium does not come from mining, but is produced by electrolysis of brine.
Some believe Cobalt faces many of the same environmental and social issues as the extraction of fossil fuels it effectively replaces. However no one complains about the Cobalt that is added to Diesel to reduce Sulpher and then destroyed by the combustion engine so that it can’t be recycled.
Questions were raised over the supply of these minerals when Sky News revealed that the UK was badly behind in its battery industry and had to increase mine production by 90 times to keep up.
However, plans are underway for a large new battery factory in Blyth as the UK as well as the US and Europe – seek to catch up with China, Japan and South Korea in manufacturing.
Batteries can be recycled, ensuring that metals are reused instead of oil burned in engines.
“While electric vehicles are not environmentally friendly, their impact on the environment is significantly lower than a car with a combustion engine,” Mr Archer said
Targeting battery makers to use more recycled materials would reduce their overall impact on the environment, he said.
Mike Hawes, executive chairman of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), said manufacturers have a legal obligation to take back propulsion batteries, mainly for recycling, which can provide a supply of raw materials.
Mr Nelmes explained that while electricity prices have been hit by the Natural gas crisis, people will cut their fuel bills by switching to electric vehicles because electricity is so much cheaper than petrol.
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For more articles, search European launch of seven new Ford electric vehicles in 2024.
