{"id":33561,"date":"2023-04-14T12:16:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-14T12:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=33561"},"modified":"2023-04-26T08:01:46","modified_gmt":"2023-04-26T08:01:46","slug":"boosting-ev-market-share-to-67-of-us-car-sales-is-a-huge-leap-but-automakers-can-meet-epas-tough-new-standards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/boosting-ev-market-share-to-67-of-us-car-sales-is-a-huge-leap-but-automakers-can-meet-epas-tough-new-standards\/","title":{"rendered":"Boosting EV market share to 67% of US car sales is a huge leap \u2013 but automakers can meet EPA\u2019s tough new\u00a0standards"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Alan Jenn<\/a>, University of California, Davis<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One big question keeps surfacing after the Biden administration announced plans to raise auto standards<\/a> so sharply they would likely boost electric vehicle production to 67% of all new passenger vehicle sales in under a decade: Can automakers pull that off?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposal would require a huge change in production and consumer choice. To put it in perspective, in 2022 about 6% of U.S. passenger vehicle sales were all-electric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I study the electric vehicle<\/a> industry and policy. Here\u2019s why I think the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s plan can succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automakers have met tough targets before<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Automakers typically push back against tougher rules and often lobby to get standards relaxed<\/a>. However, U.S. car companies have also shown that they can meet ambitious goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When California began requiring that car companies sell a certain percentage of zero-emissions vehicles, its initial target translated to about 15% of all new car sales<\/a> by 2025. Automakers quickly exceeded that goal. By 2022, nearly 19%<\/a> of California\u2019s new light-duty vehicle sales were electric. In response, the rules were ramped up last year to 100% of all new cars by 2035<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. automakers are already ramping up to meet the California rules, as well as aggressive requirements in Europe and China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/iGlzG\/1\/\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can\u2019t set quotas for EV sales, but it can require<\/a> automakers to progressively lower total greenhouse gas emissions from the vehicles they sell. Emission rates are inherently tied to fuel economy \u2013 more fuel-efficient vehicles emit less carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that is warming the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new federal proposal, which still faces a comments period and could change before being finalized, would set emissions<\/a> restrictions tight enough that it will effectively result in about two-thirds<\/a> of new light-duty vehicles sold by 2032 being electric. That\u2019s almost as aggressive as rules in the European Union. A second EPA proposal, also announced April 12, 2023, affects heavy-duty vehicles<\/a> in the same way, but sets a lower target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government is offering lots of incentives<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While the proposed rules are strict, the federal government has provided unprecedented support over the last year and a half to help meet demand for EV battery parts and production, computer chips<\/a> and charging infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law<\/a>, in conjunction with 2022\u2019s Inflation Reduction Act<\/a>, are providing billions of dollars in grants and loans<\/a> for EV and battery manufacturing, plus tax breaks for EV buyers. The infrastructure law also allocated US$7.5 billion to build a network of EV chargers<\/a> throughout the country under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure<\/a> program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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