Joe Biden’s Electric Car Vision and Challenges Ahead
By Newztodays Team
No doubt, Joe Biden’s Electric Car Vision is as high as mountains amid the European Union’s plan to ban gas-run cars by 2035.
Several states of the United States like California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts are following this plan.
So, Biden’s vision of electric cars will be a shift in the automotive landscape of the United States.
Car sales in the US stood at 7 percent last year. However, the Environmental Protection Agency wants a rise in this sale to around 40% by 2027.
However, there are some challenges to achieving such ambitious targets.
Joe Biden’s Electric Car Vision and the Missing Pieces of the Puzzle
There are some issues which require attention of the policymakers.
In order to achieve the ambitious targets of a rise in electric cars, the country requires an extensive charging network.
Also, the country also needs a reliable supply network of the minerals required to build EV batteries.
Furthermore, the country will also require genuine consumer demand for electric vehicles.
Some believed that Biden and his allies seemed to be theoretical rather than practical when they talked about the adoption of electric cars in the US.
They believed that electric cars were the only option to save the planet. Faulty EV chargers cause huge concerns for Electric Cars Drivers
But there are a lot of challenges ahead.
A Risky Dependence on China
China is said to be prepared to have a monopoly on all key components required for EV batteries.
So, the US was also relying on Chinese manufacturers and suppliers.
The US is still not ready to mine and process minerals that are key components to building EV batteries.
Though the United States has slapped high tariffs against China, China is still dominating its position in the area of electric cars.
Experts in the US have warned that rapid EV adoption will actually increase reliance on China which dominates on battery supply chain.
EV Sales Growth in the U.S.
Recent data shows that in the first quarter of this year, electric vehicles share was 8.6 percent of new light-duty vehicles’ sales in the US market.
It was also close to 8.5 percent sales in the same quarter of 2022.
The Climate Case for Electric Vehicles
Those who are advocating, say that increasing EV adoption would help to resolve issues of climate change.
This is despite the fact that there is no clarity on how much EV adoption would contribute to reducing emissions.
In the US, transportation makes less than 30 percent of emissions.
There are some other factors like air travel, rail, and shipping that contribute much to emissions.
Critics say that there should be adoption of electric vehicles.
However, the policymakers should take balancing consumers’ preferences into account in the whole episode.
EVs become part of Political campaign
Joe Biden is advocating the adoption of electric vehicles whereas former President Donald Trump has strongly opposed it.
He has promised to nation that he would immediately halt the adoption of EVs (if he comes into power).
This will have a substantial impact on the election of 2024 in states like Michigan.
Tesla’s Warning Bells for Automakers
Tesla has made significant achievements and become the top-selling car brand in California.
However, this became a threat and warning to those who were traditional car makers.
Tesla has occupied 60 percent of the U.S. EV market, setting the standard for EV success.
The competitors outside China were making efforts to compete with it, especially in sales volumes of Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y.
The billions of investments by traditional car makers were at risk due to the EV transition.
Despite the rise of EVs in the U.S., there are still challenges ahead like political and increased dependence on China for the supply of EV batteries’s components.
