Abstract
The future of electric cars becomes apparent with progressive increase on environmental degradation due to the excessive use of fossil fuels. Therefore, the need necessitating the use of electrical car is attributed to the new onslaught to use green and sustainable energy in almost all spheres of life. Thus, the need for environmental conservation and sustainability has predisposed world regions to adopt robust measures that would curb the entire globe form adverse effects of global warming generated by poor conservational practices. This article thus, discusses about the predisposing factors behind the design and preference to electric cars, and why this trend is projected to exhibit an upward trend. In addition, this article serves as a platform of making comparative analysis to various economies that have so far adopted the use of electric cars. The measures and parameters put to this include the ongoing market distribution and usage of fossil fuel-fed cars.
Effects of Oil Prices on Purchase of Electric Cars
Over the recent years, oil prices have drastically fallen, leading to an increase in oil consumption. In this perspective, the supply of oil has surpassed demand, due to the falling prices of crude oil (Redgate, 2006) .The fall in oil prices was orchestrated by increased production of crude oil in North America. The fluctuation of oil prices has a significant influence on the market of electric vehicles in the world. For instance, an increase in oil prices makes people shift their attention to the more conservative electrical means. In the economy, the purchase of vehicles is deemed an investment. In this perspective, every economic actor considers the payback period needed to cover the initial investment. If oil prices increase, the payback period of more conservative means is always the best alternative forgone. The recent market forces for both electric and oil cars has an inverse relationship (Cosgrove, 2008). The failure of one source of energy leads to thriving in the other.
Moreover, falling oil prices have a negative effect on the market for electric vehicles. Low prices of gas make the operation of oil engines cheaper, and people rarely opt for the expensive electrical units. The initial cost of acquiring an electrical vehicle is high, and this poses a major drawback to the electric automotive industry. Oil engines have many benefits in a situation where fuel prices are falling and affordable. For instance, engineers have come up with more efficient combustion engines, with low fuel consumption, and given the relatively low prices for gas, this option best suits most individuals in the middle class (Kempton & Letendre, 1997).Oil engines are efficient for covering large mileage compared to their electric counterparts. Fuel efficient combustion engines also emit less carbon dioxide into the environment. Due to their appeal, the oil engine vehicles are the most popular in the world market. Oil engines have an advantage over electrical engines when it comes to the means of recharging.Oil filling stations are available all over the world while charging stations for electrical vehicles are limited and rare.
However, the use of the electrical vehicle has many advantages as well. Despite their high cost of acquiring, electrical cars pose a big promise regarding power consumption. It is estimated that electric cars are less costly to operate by two dollars a unit, as compared to the oil engine vehicles. In the recent years, companies like Nissan and Tesla have produced low-cost electric cars, which are slowly phasing out oil engines. In a case where oil prices would constantly rise, the quantity of electric vehicles purchased would be very high. The market share for electrical vehicles in the United States is less than 1%, but this number is projected to increase to a whopping 39 million vehicles in the market by 2030.The consideration of using power saving means of transport in the United States is gaining a foothold, and this is a good indicator for the bright future for electric cars (Li & Niu, 2014).In summary, the benefits of electric vehicles surpass its cost. The adoption of electric means could save the county a lot of revenue from the export of gas and other oil products to others countries. The adoption of electrical means would also reduce environmental degradation that results from air pollution. Electric cars also encourage the efficient utilization of nuclear energy. Researchers estimate that the use of electric cars would only cause a 3% increase in the use of the national electric grid (Buydos & Library of Congress, 1992).
In this accord, the prices of oil should be regulated to favor the transition to the use of environmentally friendly and energy efficiency means. Some policies were put forward by the government to foster the transition from the use of oil to the use of green energy. For example, the government introduced the subsidies for electric cars, but the policy did not boost the sale of electric cars by a considerable rate. If the standardization of fuel prices would be affected by the fuel agency, then the costs and benefits of using electric vehicles could be equitable. The company’s manufacturing electric cars have made efforts to avail recharging stations in many locations, to improve the convenience in using electric cars.
The Future of Electric Cars
The electric car market has grown rapidly since the advocacy for green energy came up. The future of electric cars is quite promising, as many governments and other agencies are giving first class treatment for people using efficient energy. For instance, in many cities of China, individuals with electrical cars have exclusive access to free parking, and can maneuver freely through the city. The future and sustainability of electrical vehicles can be favored by the following factors. First, the use of electrical cars would cut oil prices as competition between firms would be heightened. Although, the upfront cost of obtaining an electrical car is high, the payback period that the units promise is considerably short, and the presence of government subsidies on the electric automotive industry is an added advantage (Westbrook, & Institution of Electrical Engineers, 2001). Moreover, the adoption of green energy in the world will favor the use of electric cars, which do not emit gasses into the ozone layer. The maintenance cost of electric cars is also low.
The bottom line is, the long run benefits of electric cars will favor the adoption of the means, and promote environmental conservation (Redgate, 2006) Green or efficient use of energy that does not pollute the environment has become a major concern. The campaign for efficient energy is to provide a sustainable means of life, and the campaign acts in the favor of electric vehicles, making their future quite promising.
References
Buydos, J. F., & Library of Congress. (1992). Electric vehicles. Washington, D.C. (10 First St., S.E., Washington 20540: Science Reference Section, Science, and Technology Division, Library of Congress.
Cosgrove, T. (January 01, 2008). Thriving with neighborhood electric vehicles. Transportation Land-Use Planning, and Air Quality: Proceedings of the 2007 Transportation Land-Use Planning, and Air Quality Conference: July 9-11, 2007, Orlando, Florida, 382-394.
Kempton, W., & Letendre, S. E. (January 01, 1997). Electric vehicles as a new power source for electric utilities. Transportation Research. Part D, Transport, and Environment, 3.)
Li, K., Xue, Y., Cui, S., & Niu, Q. (2014). Intelligent Computing in Smart Grid and Electrical Vehicles: International Conference on Life System Modeling and Simulation, LSMS 2014 and International Conference on Intelligent Computing for Sustainable Energy and Environment, ICSEE 2014 Shanghai, China, September 20-23, 2014 Proceedings, Part III. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Redgate, J. (January 01, 2006). Sustainable transport system using renewable energy and efficient electric vehicles. Urban Transport Xii: Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century, 33-41
Westbrook, M. H., & Institution of Electrical Engineers. (2001). The electric car: Development and future of battery, hybrid and fuel-cell cars. London: Institution of Electrical Engineers.
