The US government is ready to impose new rules on auto emissions to boost Electric vehicles demand and to save the environment.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is targeting to build up to 67% market share of electric cars of all the cars sold by 2032.
Photo: Kamil Krzaczynski (Reuters)
Electric vehicles are still at a small fraction of total US auto sales:
The Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) Proposed a new rule to limit tailpipe emissions from vehicles. As the sources said to New York Times, the agency necessitates for more than half of all new cars sold in the US to be electric by 2030 and up to 67% by 2032.
The US is the second largest country with a maximum CO2 footprint after China. The largest source of CO2 emission is the US transports.
The new EPA proposals are the toughest rule of the Biden administration till now to restrict car pollution.
Though automobile manufacturers are ramping up electric vehicle production, the ambitious targets will probably face a breeze.
Now the question is, will the regulation help to accelerate the adoption of Electric Vehicles?
Electric vehicle uptake in the US is still little. In the year 2022, the electric vehicles market share was only 5.8% of the total auto market. To encourage and change the mindset of consumers, the federal government has announced financial incentives for buyers of electric battery cars. Under the Inflation Reduction Act, consumers who buy a new electric vehicle could qualify for a credit of up to $7500.
Speeding up the adoption of policy made by the US EPA requires more investments in infrastructure. This requires more battery charging points which now total about 130000 nationwide. According to the forecast from S&P Global Mobility, the US must increase the charging points by more than eight times by 2030 to meet the requirements of Electric vehicles.
Another hurdle is access to raw materials. The US manufacturers are finding new sources of minerals for producing batteries for electric vehicles.
The prices for Electric Vehicles are falling:
The prices of electric vehicles are falling but still, they are not at par with gasoline vehicles. According to the Kelley Blue Book, on average, an Electric vehicle costs $11000 more than gasoline passenger cars and trucks of the same segments.
To boost the demand for electric vehicles, the top electric vehicle manufacturer, Tesla has already cut prices for some of its models.
Also, the US people are generally using their cars for an average of 11 years and then after use to replace their vehicles. This is another reason for the slow switch from gasoline to electric vehicles.
Now it’s a global trend to achieve zero emissions and slash the pollution from automobiles. Countries like France and Germany are setting targets for phasing out the
Petrol /diesel gasoline vehicles between 2025 and 2050.
Conclusion:
To achieve a Zero emission target and for a sustainable environment, US government is making policies, under which US EPA is imposing new rules on auto emissions. In this regard, the federal government is offering discounts and tax rebates on the purchase of electric vehicles.
