Embodied emergy to make the vehicle is also a very important consideration qhen comparing electric vehicles with conventional vehicles.
As outlined in my post on petrol prices…
the embodied energy for a Telsa Model S would take over 8 years of normal/average operation to recoup the additional CO2s generated by the electric system in these vehicles (EVs with smaller battery stystems or hybrids woukd have shorter recoup periods). From then on, one would start to be in front in relation to CO2 emissions when compared to a conventional/regular similiar sized vehicle.
If the batteries have a life say of 15 years (can’t find on the Telsa website expected battery life to replacement), then there would be about 7 years (assuming the electric car lasts 15 years) of positive CO2 reductions. Using renewable electricity over fossil fuel sources would have higher potentiak savings (noting the later source could potentially result in higher ongoing CO2 emissions).
I also understand the a significant part of the cost premium in electric vehicles such as Telsa and others is due to the high energy requirement to produce these vehicles (from cradle to operational).
If renewables or nuclear are used for lithium refining and battery manufacturing, it would would potentially reduce the embodied energy and the 8+ year period. It would never be zero as the additional energy required to manufacture the renewable energy systems/nuclear would also need consideration and the mining and transportation energy costs are unlikely to reduce in the short to medium term.
