What You Should Know About Today’s Electric Car Batteries
Most consumers regard batteries with a slight hint of contempt and mistrust. Who can blame them? Based on their experience with cellphones and laptops, batteries are needy snowflakes with fickle charging schedules, and get sucked dry at the least convenient moment.
But unlike their temperamental counterparts, electric vehicle batteries are different. They’re designed to be more robust, as they carry a heavier load and last much longer. Of course, they’re also a little more expensive than your average iPhone battery.
Still, costs for EV batteries have been falling faster than most could have expected. In fact, EV battery costs declined by 35 percent between 2014 and 2015.
That’s the result of changes to cell chemistry, manufacturing processes and aggressive pricing by large manufacturers elbowing their way into the lucrative market. Things are getting competitive, and OPEC is feeling the heat.
They’re predicting there will be 1.7 million EVs on the road by 2020, while Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates it will be more like 7.4 million, with 2 million sold in 2020 alone. Bloomberg also expects electric cars to make up 35 percent of light vehicle sales by 2040. Recent developments, such as rapidly decreasing EV battery costs, may give a slight edge to Bloomberg’s crystal ball.
“Experts say EV battery costs could be under $100/kilowatt hour by 2020, and after that, go down to about $80/kilowatt hour.”
– John McElroy, Ward’s Auto
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