Good news has come for anyone interested in buying an electric vehicle this year. A new report from TrendForce found that EV battery prices dropped by 10% in August and will continue to drop for the rest of 2023.
Battery costs are one of the biggest factors impacting EV adoption. EVs have higher upfront costs than internal combustion engine vehicles.
EV costs, in general, have been on the decline, which is a win for the environment and consumers. The declining costs are attributed to several factors, from advancing technology, increased competition in the market, and economies of scale (i.e., as we build more of something, we can make it better and cheaper).
Additionally, many governments are incentivizing and subsidizing EVs, further reducing the cost for consumers.
Electrifying transportation is one of the hottest topics in the discussion of our rapidly warming planet, as transportation makes up around 25% of all heat-trapping pollution. Switching to EVs drastically reduces pollution, further preventing Earth's warming.
There is pushback against electrification, as some argue that mining lithium and other metals needed for the batteries is unethical and environmentally destructive. There is fear that the shift to EVs will require extreme amounts of lithium and destructive mining.
But context is always helpful. University of Oxford researcher Hannah Ritchie argued, "'We need to dig up millions of tonnes of minerals for clean energy.' Sounds big. Except we're digging billions of tonnes of fossil fuels out every year. That's what we're trying to replace."
While we should still be aware and proactive about the damaging effects of electrification, in general, many argue that "even cars with the dirtiest batteries are still cleaner than cars with no battery at all."
Shifting away from dirty energy-based transportation is a critical step in the fight against the warming of our planet. Electrification doesn't need to mean everyone who has a gas-powered vehicle must buy an EV; it can also mean that governments invest in electrified public transportation.
Automakers are determined to streamline EV production and reduce costs for consumers. As one rep from Toyota said, "We are aiming to drastically change the situation where current batteries are too big, heavy, and expensive."
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