Lower price a must to promote e-cars
dubai — The prohibitive cost of electric vehicles (EVs) is the main reason why motorists in Dubai would still prefer fossil-fuel cars over EVs despite the government’s efforts to put in place the infrastructure for a shift from hydrocarbon to zero-carbon emission transport.
Talking to Khaleej Times at the Electric Vehicles UAE Conference, Akin Adamson, former regional director of UK-based Transport Research Laboratory and current chairperson of the EV conference, said: “The biggest barrier to this shift is that EVs are much more expensive than petrol or diesel cars.”
Adamson said the infrastructure like charging stations in Dubai is not a problem. “Actually, there are now more charging stations in Dubai than EVs on the road. The limiting factor is still the people’s willingness to purchase these e-vehicles.”
Adamson said in some countries, like the UK, subsidies are provided by the government but they are still not enough to sway people in ditching their conventional cars.
He said in the UK, prospective EV buyers are given £5,000 but the cost of a Tesla is around £60,000 pounds; after the subsidy, £55,000 is still a hefty amount. Meanwhile, the cheapest e-car in the market, Nissan Leaf, is around £21,000; minus £5,000 subsidy, the remaining £16,0000 is still higher than a petrol sedan which is only £11,000.
He said EVs must be sold at a lower price to create a mass market. When asked if a subsidy is also needed in Dubai to achieve its target of having 32,000 electric and hybrid cars on the road by 2020 and 42,000 by 2030, Adamson said subsidy is not required to reach these goals. “But if Dubai wants to be more aggressive, it can follow the model used by Norway (see box story) which has been giving higher subsidy and incentives to own EVs,” he added.
On Sunday, the Road and Transport Authority (RTA) and the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) announced a slew of incentives for electric cars owners, including free car charging until 2019, free designated green parking in Dubai, free electric vehicle registration and renewal fees, free Salik tag and a special licence plate sticker identifying the vehicle as an electric car. Dubai is also working on installing additional 100 charging stations to bring the number up to 200 by 2018.
“The Dubai government is doing a fantastic job in creating the right conditions for electric vehicle owners to enjoy driving in the UAE,” said Ben Pullen, co-founder and managing director of Global EVRT, who is organising a nineday inter-emirate EV road trip in January next year.
“There are many public charging stations and Dewa and the RTA have introduced attractive incentives. The main challenge for all of us working in the electric vehicle industry is to raise awareness about electric vehicles and the numerous benefits they have. From our experience, we know that once a driver tries an electric vehicle, they are convinced they want to buy or rent one. The acceleration, comfort and ease of use are exquisite. The need to raising awareness was one of the main messages during the conference,” he told Khaleej Times.
Charging is smarter than filling
Trading a petrol pump for an electric plug is definitely good for the environment. For starters, Samer Alawiye, CEO of Green Parking, said it is important to note that EV charging is unlike refilling petrol. The former uses smart technology, meaning the EV communicates with the power charger. In simple terms, the power charger sends signal to the car and asks the car how much power is required. When the outside weather is hot, the car will send a longer a message for a longer charging time but as the car charges power, the temperature cools down and the battery needs less time to charge.
Another important thing to note is that EVs do not require full charge to run. An e-car, like a cellphone, will take a shorter time to charge from 0-80 per cent than 81-100 per cent. All electric cars have what is termed an “onboard charger” in the car itself. So, all you need is to use the charging cord you get with your car to connect your vehicle to a source of electricity.
In the UAE, there are over 100 charging stations supplied to date and another 100 charging stations will come next year. These charging stations are free to use until 2019.
angel@khaleejtimes.com