India’s desire for EVs currently faces a green conundrum. While EV adoption helps reduce carbon footprint, the objective is undermined by the use of fossil fuels in electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Electric vehicles can only operate on clean electricity. Current electric vehicle expansion will, paradoxically, result in a prolongation of the use of fossil fuel-generated power sources if more renewable energy options are not developed.
When approximately 64% of China’s electricity was produced by coal-fired sources, a 2016 study from Tsinghua University in Beijing found that the country’s growing use of electric vehicles resulted in the release of two to five times more particulate matter and emissions than gasoline-powered vehicles. Approximately 60% of China’s electricity is currently still reportedly provided by coal-fired sources.
Around 10% of all new vehicles sold worldwide in 2022 were electric vehicles, a roughly four-fold increase over 2019 sales. By 2035, it is predicted that electric vehicle sales would make up about 45% of all new car sales. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), by 2040, the transportation sector’s annual electricity demand would increase from basically nil to over 4,000 terawatt hours (TWH), primarily as a result of the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs).
Purchasing renewable energy to power EVs
With consumers giving more weight to the original source of electricity generation, automakers, and charging businesses have realised the need of acquiring renewable energy sources for EVs. The adoption of renewable energy sources and the electrification of vehicles can have a significant impact on emissions reduction. The use of renewable energy as the primary source for recharging electric vehicles is essential if we are to actually attain a zero-carbon outcome for the following reasons:
- Reduction of carbon emissions: Reducing carbon emissions is the main objective of the switch to renewable energy. A major amount of the world’s carbon emissions are attributable to the transportation industry, and it is thought that one of the most important ways to reduce those emissions is through the widespread use of electric vehicles. However, the advantages of the switch to electric vehicles are essentially lost if such vehicles are charged with energy produced from fossil fuels.
- Sustainability: As fossil fuels are limited resources, they will eventually exhaust themselves. Solar, wind, and hydroelectric power are examples of renewable energy sources that are sustainable and never run out. Electric vehicles are powered by renewable energy, which prevents the depletion of finite resources.
- Environmental effect: The extraction and burning of fossil fuels have a considerable negative impact on the environment, causing habitat destruction, air and water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. However, using renewable energy to charge those batteries can help reduce the total environmental impact of electric vehicles. The manufacturing and disposal of batteries for electric vehicles both have an impact on the environment.
