Electric Vehicles Infrastructure – Growth & Its Challenges
Post the turn of the century, unchecked plundering of our limited fossil fuels & natural gas reserves has driven humanity to the fragile precipice it stands on today. Heatwaves have gone from freak phenomena to a regular occurrence around the globe.
AQI’s of major cities & international business hubs continue to decline in quality as the amount of air pollution maintains its upward arc.
Innovations & technological developments clubbed with increasing population has naturally paved the way for more & more vehicles on road and as oil reserves begin to diminish, costs of fuel have skyrocketed. Staying true to our historical tendencies, our search for solutions & more importantly their implementation invariably occurs at the 11th hour. A realization has truly set in, that to salvage our quality of life and to preserve the environment around us, an immediate transition to ‘electric vehicles’ is paramount.
With a global aim set by superpowers around the world to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, a major reduction in our carbon footprint & greenhouse gas emissions is required. Through extensive research, the European Energy Agency have stated that carbon emissions of an electric car are around 30% lower than driving a petrol or diesel car after accounting for electricity generation emissions. A shift from vehicles with internal combustion engines (ICE’s) to zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) with future optimization could bump up this figure as the years go by.
To see through our goals to fruition, the most important factor will be the development & efficient management of the EV Infrastructure. A long-term, sustainable & mutually profitable design and subsequent integration shall be key.
Major aspects to be focused on:
- Building an extensive network of charging stations at regular intervals encompassing home chargers and stations near major business centers, highways & suburbs. Onus lies on increasing accessibility & ease of use which will promote potential customers to opt for EV’s.
- Affordable Public Charging – Most customers utilizing public chargers are those who either cannot afford installation of home chargers or do not have the flexibility of time & space to do so. Finding ways to subsidize energy & electric costs for public charging will open the market to a larger base of users.
- Matching charging speeds to account for customer needs – Increase in demand & supply of EV’s will most certainly require charging stations to have multiple speed options of chargers available. Fast DC charging, although relatively more expensive allows for convenience & minimal wastage of time with vehicles docked. Similarly, chargers at parking lots, public destinations & homes can be allotted slower AC chargers accounting for inherent stationary time spent at these locations.
- Research & Dev – Lithium Batteries add up to approximately 30% cost of an EV. Research & potential innovations into cheaper alternatives can enlarge the EV eco-system & mutually benefit service providers and end-users alike.
- Local Manufacturing – In country manufacturing will aid in reducing shipping costs, transit delays while infusing a self-dependance for countries to invest and develop their own EV’s.
- Supply Chain Management – As visible post pandemic and with increasing political instability across continents, the supply chain for essential components like batteries for example can be severely hampered, even coming to an entire standstill at some points. Foresight and anticipation are required by industry & national leaders to stabilize EV supply chains for future growth.
- Enhancement of Customer Experience – Last but not least, customer satisfaction will be key in increasing the no. of electric vehicles required for future sustainability. Paying attention to safety of chargers and stations, widespread availability, affordability & standardization of costs amongst other benefits could be key in attracting customers to purchase EV’s.
Learn tons more about the electric vehicle eco-system from expert industry leaders at the MarketsandMarkets EV Infrastructure Crystal Ball Event on the 24th of May 2022.
CLICK HERE TO EXPLORE & REGISTER FOR THE EVENT or reach out to us at [email protected] regarding any queries you may have.
Ayush Kanitkar
MarketsandMarkets
+91-8975985061
