How much does an electric car pollute? It depends on the energy sources powering the grids. While in Switzerland an electric car cuts emissions
Drivers of an electric car in Switzerland can achieve a 100 per cent reduction in emissions compared to vehicles powered by fossil fuels. But that same figure drops to 37 per cent in the Netherlands, 15 per cent in Serbia, and as low as 4 per cent on the island of Cyprus. Calculating the real pollution impact of an electric car is a highly topical issue: a recent study by Radiant Energy Group, based in Germany and the US, highlights the importance of the energy sources that power the most eco-friendly vehicles.
There are even countries such as Poland and Kosovo where some electric cars can have a worse impact than petrol and diesel vehicles, because charging infrastructure is closely tied to coal. At the top of the ranking is Switzerland, which can rely on a mix of hydropower and nuclear energy, followed by Norway, where the CO2 saving is 98 per cent, then France (96 per cent) and Sweden at 95 per cent. With an emissions reduction of 62 per cent, Italy sits in a mid-to-low position but above Germany, which stands at 55 per cent with its mix of renewables and coal.
Beyond the question of the energy sources powering the grids, there is also the issue of the time slots in which vehicles are charged, particularly in countries such as Spain and Germany itself, which in recent years have pushed decisively into wind and solar: if electric cars are plugged in during the afternoon, the CO2 saving can come close to 20 per cent compared to charging at night, when electricity grids are powered mainly by fossil sources. As Radiant Energy Group researcher Sid Bagga explains, "electrification is the cornerstone of transport decarbonisation, which can never be achieved with fossil combustion engines," but everything "will depend on the decarbonisation strategies implemented by states to ensure that the electric transition of vehicles truly comes about."
A study by Volvo focuses on the same theme, comparing some of its own battery-powered and petrol models to establish the point in the overall lifecycle at which the former become more advantageous in terms of emissions. The basic premise is that electric cars enter the market with a very high CO2 "debt" to make up relative to their competitors. Taking the Swedish manufacturer's own example, the extraction and refining of materials, the assembly and the production of battery modules for a C40 Recharge result in greenhouse gas emissions almost 70 per cent higher than those generated during the construction of a petrol XC40.
The result is that the electric vehicle must travel at least 80,000 kilometres before it begins to deliver real benefits in terms of CO2 savings compared to a vehicle with a combustion engine. This is the case in Europe, where the contribution of renewables to grid supply is growing; if the global energy mix is taken as the reference point instead — which is more heavily skewed towards fossil sources — the break-even point rises to 115,000 kilometres. This study too, in essence, demonstrates that without strong decarbonisation policies, the electric transition of cars risks remaining a half-finished revolution.