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Photo: Michael Movchin / Felix Müller, Wikimedia CC
This year two “EVs” repeatedly made headlines — environmental voters and electric vehicles. When we look back in 2035, by which time we should have converted completely to renewable energy, 2020 could be seen as the year when the auto industry fully committed to the transition to electric vehicles and trucks. Despite the fact that some car companies backed President Trump’s rollback of the “clean car rule” that seemed to undercut the push for electric vehicles, most of the big car companies began to plan for their fleets to transition to electric vehicles. Some companies like Ford, Volvo, VW, and Mercedes made a bigger bet than others, and Ford publicly committed to stick with California and continued to move ahead with plans for cleaner cars, pushed by Tesla and other new car companies trying to break through.
Why? There were several reasons for this new interest in electric vehicles.
First, investment in electric vehicles and their components and infrastructure continue to grow in spite of the pandemic and economic downturn, not to mention the infancy of the market.According to MarketWatch.com, there is “sky high” investor interest in clean energy and electric vehicle companies using a new form of initial public offering (IPO) in which investors merge with a company and take it public immediately. Tesla is the new Apple when it comes to stocks, apparently. For example, according to Axios, “Rivian closed a $2.5 billion funding round ahead of the production launch next year of its SUV, pickup, and delivery vehicles for Amazon,” and “Karma Automotive, which is in the early stages of producing a plug-in hybrid sports car, has raised another $100 million.”
Third, the number of electric vehicle models available to consumers is expected to more than triple in the next three years, from roughly 40 to 127 in the United States, as they’re expected to get much cheaper. Batteries are typically the most expensive part of electric vehicles, but the United States Department of Energy expects that battery costs will fall dramatically.
The bottom line: the United States in 2020 was a crossroads in its relationship with gas-powered vehicles. And it seems like our future will soon be electric — and we can’t wait for that Mustang EV!
GM unveiled big plans at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show for electric vehicles — driverless “shuttle” vans and even – imagine this – flying cars. CEO Mary Barra, the keynote speaker, unveiled a new company logo and highlighted innovative new vehicles. The company has created a new unit called BrightDrop that will sell its EV600 […]
E&E reports in an in-depth piece on Tuscaloosa, chronic illness and exposure to air pollution are exacerbating the spiking COVID rates and increasing the risks for people living in neighborhoods just outside the boundaries of industrial plants and refineries across the country.
by Amy Lupica, ODP Contributing Writer On Monday, the Trump administration rejected more stringent standards on the nation’s most widespread air pollutant, soot. Despite mounting evidence that air pollution is linked to lethal outcomes from respiratory illnesses like COVID-19, the administration moved to retain the standards set in 2012 under President Obama. The administration says […]
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