Context: Battery electric vehicles are at the heart of the government’s push for net zero. However, this strategy may not be as successful in India’s peculiar conditions. While there is little debate that electrification is the future, the roadmap remains unclear.
What are Electric Vehicles(EVs)?
An EV is defined as a vehicle that can be powered by an electric motor that draws electricity from a battery. There are four types of electric vehicles available:
- Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs): They are also known as All-Electric Vehicles (AEV). Electric Vehicles using BEV technology run entirely on a battery-powered electric drivetrain. The electricity used to drive the vehicle is stored in a large battery pack which can be charged by plugging into the electricity grid. The charged battery pack then provides power to one or more electric motors to run the electric car.
- Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEVs): They combine a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) with an electric propulsion system, resulting in a hybrid drivetrain that substantially lowers fuel usage. The onboard battery in a conventional hybrid is charged when the internal combustion engine is powering the drivetrain.
- Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEVs): They also have hybrid drivetrain that uses both an ICE and electric power for motive power, backed by rechargeable batteries that can be plugged into a power source.
- Fuel Cell Vehicles (FCVs): These vehicles use hydrogen to power their onboard electric motor. FCVs combine hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity, which runs the motor. Unlike BEVs, their range and refuelling process are comparable to conventional cars.
Issues with Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) Push
- Requirement of Upfront Subsidy: Push for such vehicles require an elaborate system of lucrative tax incentives which must be backed by government subsidies. However, this overt subsidisation will further intensify the state's fiscal burden.
- Charging Network: India currently has only about 2,000 public charging stations operational across the country to support more than 1 million EVs. Also, due to varied power requirements for differently sized vehicles, India’s charging infrastructure demands are unique. This has further created challenges in charging infrastructure expansion.
- Electricity Source: In India, the grid is still fed largely by coal-fired thermal plants. Using fossil fuel generation to power EVs would mean reduced tailpipe emissions in the cities, but continuing pollution from the running of the thermal plant.
- Value Chain: India is struggling to make inroads into the global value chain for sourcing of key inputs such as Lithium, Cobalt and Nickel. This will make India almost entirely reliant on imports from a small pool of countries such as Argentina, Chile, China and Australia in order to meet the increasing demand.
Way Forward
The two major objectives should be to cut emissions and reduce costly fuel imports for which there are a lot of technologies to choose from:
- Hybrids: The hybrid technology is seen as a good intermediate step towards achieving the all-electric goal. Hybrids typically have improved fuel efficiency through electrification of the powertrain, but do not require the charging infrastructure base that is an essential for BEVs. Additionally, a hybrid vehicle base may also spawn the manufacture of the battery ecosystem, which can then be leveraged for a BEV push.
- Ethanol & Flex Fuel: A flex fuel, or flexible fuel, vehicle has an internal combustion engine, but unlike a regular petrol or diesel vehicle, it can run on more than one type of fuel, or even a mixture of fuels such as petrol and ethanol. A nationwide pilot that is currently underway aims to replicate the commercial deployment of this technology in other markets such as Brazil, Canada, and the US.
- FCEVs & Hydrogen ICEs: Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) are practically zero emission, while Hydrogen ICE vehicles are similar to conventional internal combustion engine vehicles, with a few tweaks to prep them to run on hydrogen. Certain components of the engine can be modified or changed which will make them compatible with hydrogen, instead of petrol or diesel.
- Synthetic Fuels: These fuels are made from carbon dioxide and hydrogen, and are produced using renewable energy. The idea is to make this usable in all petrol-engine cars, rendering their use virtually CO2-neutral, and thereby give ICE cars a fresh lease of life.
ConclusionIt must be noted that monetary incentives alone cannot drive EV penetration. Hence, the government must invest in robust EV infrastructure, parking benefits and workplace charging facilities. Further, vehicle manufacturers must maintain a technology-agnostic approach that spells out the emissions objectives that they have to meet, irrespective of technology.