However this constant championing of electric vans as if they’re solution to the world’s ills is getting out of hand...
Now José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero , Spanish prime minister says the EU will publish an electric vehicle development plan shortly. Zapatero was speaking as he outlined Spanish plans for its six month EU Presidency, hmmm, well timed then.
But in case you didn’t go to school, the electric power for the vehicle’s battery has to come from somewhere, and most likely a power station, as opposed to a four-pack of Duracell HP7s.
According to research conducted by Transport Watch diesel powered vehicles emit approximately half as much CO2 as electric vehicles when the use of fossil fuels to produce electricity is taken into account. The research paper says: "We conclude that the notion that electric cars will reduce emissions is a fiction."
Factors making the rechargeable cars less efficient include the amount of electricity lost on the journey between the coal fired power stations which generate it and the point where it recharges the car, and the energy lost by the batteries and the motor.
The researchers calculated that of the energy burned in a power station, only a quarter reaches an electric car after leakages and losses along the supply chain are considered, giving the vehicle an energy efficiency score of 24%.
So is it just UVB on this rant or are you similarly outraged by this blinkered view?
It's true that the electric energy that can feed electric motors comes mainly from power plants fired by fossil fuels, which are a source of pollution. However, in the next few years things could change radically resorting to renewable energy sources (solar and wind) to produce the electricity we need. What do you think about this topic?
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