Electric vehicles (EV) bring tangible benefits to organisations.
| Benefit | Description | Case study |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Total Cost of Ownership | EVs can reduce up to 90% of the fuel and maintenance costs as compared with combustion engine cars. [1] This creates a 5-10 year strategic pathway that will capture these benefits and ensure that your business is in a leadership position. | Melbourne Water has estimated cost savings of approximately $2,000 to $3,000 per year per electric vehicle in its fleet. [2] DHL reports 60-80% savings on fuel and maintenance costs on their streetscooter fleet. [3] |
| 2. Competitiveness | EVs can create additional competitive advantages through modernisation and technology development. | The Ingka Group (IKEA Group) its is using EVs as a pillar to future proof their core business against market, legislational, and technological changes by transitioning to 100% zero emissions last-mile deliveries by 2025. [4] |
| 3. Carbon neutral fleets | Electric vehicles can completely decarbonise a vehicle fleet because they eliminate tailpipe emissions (when paired with low carbon electricity supply) | Norway's national post office is achieving zero carbon driving on its national fleet by pairing renewable energy installations (i.e. Solar PV) with their EV fleets. [5] |
| 4. Branding | EVs allow organisations to develop a brand around innovation, competitiveness, sustainability and technology development, whether the organisation its fleet-based (i.e. delivery) or has EVs as part of operations (i.e. company cars). | The retailer METRO AG its is using eMobility to strengthen its positioning as a sustainable organisation, while mitigating business risks, reducing their carbon footprint and opening new business opportunities for customer engagement. [6] It is doing this through charging infrastructure installation across all of its sites. |
| 5. New business opportunities | EVs allow an array of new business opportunities either directly or indirectly related to the vehicles. These can include revenue from charging facilities, increased sales for retailers (from customers charging), energy management services, and even electricity grid services with V2G. | Having publicly shared EVSEs has shown to increase retail activity in 64% of sampled consumers with electric vehicles in shopping malls, groceries and service stations. [7] Vehicle to grid has demonstrated revenues per EV of up to €1,869/year in Denmark with a fleet of 10 cars [8] and it has an estimated global market value of USD$2 billion by 2025. [9] |
| 6. Improved work environment and user satisfaction | EVs can create greater user satisfaction as compared with conventional vehicles. This is a result of better technical performance, where EVs are described as a more pleasant and fun vehicle to drive. Therefore, these EVs can reduce stress levels from fleet users (i.e. through reduction of noise) and improve the overall wellbeing in their work environment. | The Norwegian National Post notes that user satisfaction of drivers using EVs is the highest of vehicle fleet drivers. It improves the work environment of drivers by reducing stress that impacts sleeping habits and other practices. [10] In Australia, users report electric vehicles are incredibly easy to operate with a smooth, low-effort driving experience. Their quietness reduces stress while driving in traffic. [11] |
Benefits to society
Decarbonisation
EVs have the capacity to decarbonise society across the transport, electricity, building and energy sectors.
EVs also help to introduce additional renewable energy production into a power system through the provision of several of grid services (i.e. ancillary services).
By using their storage capability through technologies like vehicle-to-grid, EVs can contribute to the decarbonisation of the building and energy sectors. [12]
Environment
EVs are as close to carbon neutral as any transport technology currently available in the market, when paired with a low carbon electricity supply.
In Australia, transport accounts for almost 20% of total emissions and this is increasing annually. The highest emissions on record are for the year 2018. [13] If the country continues at this pace, Australia will not make its Paris Agreement target of 26% to 28% emissions reduction by 2030.
In Australia, the Renewable Energy Target is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encourage sustainable energy sources. [14]
Low carbon energy supply can also be achieved with small scale solutions – such as buildings with solar PV installations or onshore wind turbines.
Health and local pollution
In Australia, approximately 75 percent of air pollution is from motor vehicle emissions. [15]
EVs help to alleviate this issue. Studies with real-world exhaust emissions data find BEVs emit only around 50% and 12.5% of the amount of local particle matter compared with Euro 6 petrol and diesel vehicles respectively. [16]
The economic cost of air pollution is estimated to be US$2.6 trillion annually, [17] and results in around 7 million deaths globally. [18]
The World Health Organisation communicates that exposure to particulate matter PM2.5 (which can be created from motor vehicles, power plants, airplanes and fuel burning) [19] can cause strokes, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and lower respiratory infections. It also reduces solar irradiation – which decreases photosynthesis in plants and can cause leaf damage and reduced growth. Ultimately affecting a plants’ ability to capture carbon emissions.
Read more about the health benefits of EVs.
Noise reduction
Noise reduction a significant benefit of EVs, as it directly and indirectly creates other co-benefits.
Evs result in less noise pollution, which has been linked to health benefits (such as lower stress levels), and the potential to benefit urban planning (with less noisier streets and cities). [20]
The difference in noise emissions between BEVs and ICEVs strongly depends on vehicle speed. In lower speeds, up to about 30km/hr, driving in full electric mode will have a greater positive impact in reducing noise than in higher speeds for example, over 50km/hr. [21]
An electric vehicle journey is quieter, as noise and vibrations from the vehicle are reduced, resulting in happier drivers and passengers. [22]
Increased pro-environmentalism
Studies have shown that hands-on experience with an EV (as users or owners) can increase perceptions and engagement in pro-environmental actions and practices, such as energy consumption. [23]
Between 32-42% of EV users have been found to have installed Solar PV – making the energy supply of EVs 100% carbon free. [24]
Life cycle emissions
Even when considering the life cycle emissions of EVs in comparison to conventional cars and standard hybrids, EV are largely the most environmental option. [25]
When the electricity mix is clean, such as in Norway, EVs are undoubtedly the most environmentally friendly option (from an emissions perspective).
Battery production emissions depend on the location of production. Batteries produced in the US and Europe have much less emissions.
The total emissions of EVs are lower when we produce batteries with low carbon electricity. This might be in countries with clean electricity mixes or in factories that rely mostly on renewables, such as the Tesla Model 3 factory. [26]
Battery production life cycle emissions across regions
[27]
Source: carbonbrief.org