Electric cars are becoming increasingly popular, and it’s no surprise. They are responsive to drive, cost-effective to run, and very good for local air quality. And if you are a company car driver, they are highly tax efficient. In fact, we think there are few downsides, especially considering the variety of models that are available to lease.

That’s not always been the case. Not so long ago, there were just a handful of cars to pick from. Today, there are electric models in just about every body style you can think of. More than that, EVs are offered with a variety of power outputs and battery sizes, in the same way that there are usually multiple engines available in petrol and diesel models.

So why isn’t everyone in an electric car? Price remains a critical barrier. Yes, they cost less to run than a car powered by an engine, but they carry a higher purchase price to start with. Which is where leasing becomes an ideal choice.

Leasing an EV is the answer
When you consider a vehicle’s costs on a month-by-month basis – rather than a large lump sum required to buy a car – many EVs offer comparable leasing costs; that’s before you start to factor in running costs, where EVs hold a significant advantage.

For example, you can lease a Volkswagen e-Up! 32 kWh with a similar (if not better) specification than a Toyota Yaris 1.5 Hybrid Excel for £193.03 per month against the Yaris at £197.92 per month. It’s a similarly sized car, with both models well suited for urban driving, but the e-Up! will cost you far less to run thanks to the cheapness of home charging and lower maintenance costs.

Looking at an even closer comparison, the popular and stylish MINI Hatch is offered with either electric or petrol power. The Cooper S model – where the electric range starts – sees a monthly leasing cost of £236.91 for the 1.5 litre petrol model.

Turning to the electric MINI Cooper S the monthly lease rental costs starts at £260.22 per month, both on a 48-month personal lease. While the headline rental of the petrol MINI is cheaper, many drivers will comfortably save the £23 difference each month in fuel costs alone, and many could save that each week.

The above comparisons are based on compact cars, so what happens when we look at larger machines? Well, the price difference increases, but not by much. The VW T-Roc 1.5 TSI EVO R-Line – one of the most popular models in the family SUV class – starts at £259.62 per month.

If we look at a comparable Kia e-Niro 2 64 kWh, which has a range approaching 300 miles on a charge, prices start at £286.21 a month. As with above models, to keep comparisons fair, the specifications are similar, as are the physical size of the car and the power/performance figures. As with the MINI comparison, the £27 cost differential in picking a Kia e-Niro over a VW T-Roc can easily be reclaimed in fuel costs each month.

And the list could go on. There are electric cars available as superminis, city cars, family hatchbacks, estates, compact SUVs, mid-sized SUVs, large SUVs . . . everywhere really. Prices are close to that which you might pay for a petrol, diesel, or hybrid model, but with the added benefit that you can charge conveniently at home, and spend a lot less on fuel.

Charge ahead to cheaper running costs
For example, it will cost around £10 to fully charge a Kia e-Niro on a home tariff (based on 16p/kWh – though with smart or off-peak tariffs this can easily be reduced), and that will comfortably get drivers 280 miles in real-world conditions. To cover the same distance in the T-Roc, based on the official fuel economy, it will take 25 litres of fuel. At a broad average of 130p per litre for petrol, drivers will pay more than £32 to drive the same distance.

Many electric cars now have a range of around 200 miles on a charge, which is considerably further than most drivers cover in a day. Even the smallest models will comfortably cover more than 100 miles on a single charge, and recharging those EVs can take as little as 20 minutes.

Larger EVs with longer ranges will double that recharging time, but also be able to travel around 300 miles before requiring a charge. For anyone that claims 300 miles is too short for a reasonable range, sitting at 70mph on a motorway for three hours would see a driver cover 210 miles, by which time it is recommended that they take should be taking a break regardless.

Read more: The Herald Scotland

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The Government’s work to decarbonise transport is placing too much emphasis on the shift to electric vehicles without encouraging a shift to clean transport alternatives.

A new report from think tank The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) analyses the Committee on Climate Change’s sixth carbon budget and shows that, without additional measures being put in place, the current approaches to reaching net zero could lead to significantly more cars on the UK’s roads.

It predicts there will be a 28% increase in car ownership between 2021 and 2050, with 10 million more cars on the road by the mid-century.

At the same time, there will be an 11% rise in car traffic while even more land will be required for car parking.

It also warns that an approach that places too much emphasis on the shift to electric vehicles – without also providing sufficient support for alternatives including affordable public transport, walking and cycling – would also likely benefit wealthy people more.

Read more: Fleet World

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Demand for electric vehicles has overtaken diesel engines for the first time in the new car leasing market, new figures indicate.

The data from comparison site Leasing.com shows sales enquiries for EVs – comprising battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrids and hybrid – outperformed demand for diesel vehicles throughout the second quarter of 2021, after steadily increasing since the start of the year.

Since January, BEV inquiries have risen 27% and hybrids by 57%, with the biggest increase being seen in plug-in hybrids at 78%. In contrast, petrol vehicles only saw a 3% growth and diesel plummeted by 13%.

Leasing.com expects to see BEVs hit 20% of overall enquires in 2021.

Read more: fleetworld

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Demand for electrified vehicles has overtaken that of diesel-powered models for the first time in the leasing sector, according to Leasing.com.

Sales enquiry data from the car leasing comparison site shows demand for electrified vehicles – consisting of battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and hybrid vehicles – has been steadily increasing since the start of the year and has outperformed demand for diesel vehicles throughout the second quarter of 2021.

This reflects the overall new car market’s shift away from diesel, as highlighted in the latest registration figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and traders. In the year to date diesel vehicles have achieved an 18% market share, while electrified vehicles have managed 21.7%.

Dave Timmis, managing director of Leasing.com, said: “We’ve been planning for the UK market to shift towards electric drivetrains, but the rate at which they’ve overtaken diesel has been surprising.

“The rise of electric vehicles is being driven by increased accessibility. The market was previously dominated by relatively expensive models such as the Tesla Model S, while newer cost-effective models like the Hyundai Ioniq and the Vauxhall Corsa E are now opening up EVs to all motorists in the UK and leasing is helping to make them affordable.”

Read more: AM ONLINE

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Royal Mail is to boost its UK electric vehicle (EV) fleet ten-fold as part of its plans to slash emissions.

An additional 3,000 vehicles are to be rolled out, with EV charging points to be installed at all the Delivery Offices set to receive the vehicles.

It follows the launch in May of Royal Mail’s first ever Delivery Office to feature an all-electric fleet of collection and delivery vehicles. Six electric charging posts and 12 charging points were installed to support the electrification of the 23 diesel delivery and collection vans at The Bristol East Central Delivery Office.

Now, other Delivery Offices across the UK are being considered for similar fleet makeovers in the coming months, with a particular focus on those in places with existing Clean Air Zones, or plans to introduce them.

In early 2020, Royal Mail signed a three-year deal with EDF for the provision of EV chargers to support its fleet electrification. The following month, the French energy firm acquired EV charging company Pod Point, having already acquired battery storage and EV charging company Pivot Power.

Royal Mail, meanwhile, has been involved in several trials and fleet electrification projects, including the Optimise Prime project exploring how to mitigate the impact of commercial EV electrification on networks. It was also part of London Electric Vehicle Company’s real-world testing and trial phase for its VN5 alongside DPD and Octopus Energy.

Read more: CURRENT

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A new analysis from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) suggests that global sales of gas-powered cars likely peaked in 2017, marking a major milestone in the shift to electric vehicles.

Demand for conventional vehicles fell in 2018 and 2019 before dropping sharply in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. While sales are likely to rebound as the pandemic ebbs, growing demand for plug-in vehicles means that gas-powered cars are almost certainly in “permanent decline,” according to the report.

BNEF projects that global EV sales will go from from 3.1 million in 2020 to 14 million in 2025, driven by falling costs for lithium-ion batteries and new policies that encourage the adoption of electric cars. The analysis finds that, in the business-as-usual scenario, EVs will account for a majority of new car sales by around 2035. To reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, however, electric cars will need to account for 100 percent of new sales by 2035. To reach that goal, governments must enact new policies to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles and instate new regulations on electrifying heavy trucks, according to the report.

“The growth of electric transport is an amazing success story to date, and the future of the EV market is bright. But there are still over 1.2 billion combustion cars on the road and the fleet turns over slowly,” Colin McKerracher, head of the advanced transport team at BNEF, said in a statement. “Reaching net zero by mid-century will require all hands on deck, particularly for trucks and other heavy commercial vehicles where the transition has barely started.”

Read more: YaleEnvironment360

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BloombergNEF, an energy research firm, says 70 percent of new vehicles will be EVs by 2040. But governments will have to work harder to get to net zero emissions.

A new report from BloombergNEF (BNEF) estimates that, even with no new economic or policy initiatives put forth by global governments, EVs and other zero-emissions vehicles will account for 70 percent of new-vehicle sales by 2040, up from 4 percent in 2020.

But to meet the goal of having net-zero emissions by 2050, a goal stated in the current policies of countries including Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States, BNEF estimates there will need to be policy measures to encourage further adoption of EV and other zero-emissions vehicles, especially in the heavy-duty truck fleet.

Some policies encouraging EV adoption are already in place, but more will need to be adopted to meet the most aggressive emissions goals.

For all the news from carmakers about new and future electric vehicles, you’d think EVs already made up a big part of the global vehicle fleet. But you’d be wrong. Though sales of EV passenger cars are on the upswing—especially in Europe and China—EVs still only account for a small percentage of new-car sales and an even smaller share of cars on the road. A new report from research firm BloombergNEF (BNEF) projects that things could look quite different by 2040, when BNEF says 70 percent of passenger cars could be EVs or other zero-emission vehicles such as fuel-cell vehicles. But even that huge growth won’t be enough for the governments that say they’re targeting net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

BNEF’s report tallies three million global passenger-car EV sales in 2020. The report predicts that those sales will rise to 14 million by 2025 and will account for almost 70 percent of new-car sales globally and 90 percent of new-car sales in Europe by 2040, even without new investment or enticement from global governments. But some governments, including Canada, the European Union, and the United States, have announced ambitious plans to produce net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. And even given BNEF’s rosy estimates, there would still be internal-combustion-engine (ICE) cars on the roads gobbling up fossil fuels and spewing out carbon emissions by that date.

How to Electrify the Commercial-Truck Fleet?
To avoid a smoggy future, BNEF says governments will need to nudge the hand of the market by subsidizing EV infrastructure, setting stricter limits on carbon dioxide emissions, and implementing mandates for the electrification of commercial truck fleets, which have so far been much slower to electrify than the passenger-car segment. The report also suggests limiting vehicle traffic in urban centers.

Read more: CAR AND DRIVER

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Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) sales have once again seen a significant increase, with a jump of 441.3% recorded last month when compared to May 2020.

The latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that 13,120 BEVs were registered in May 2021 compared to 2,424 the same month a year prior.

However, despite the jump in sales, BEVs held only 8.4% of the market in May 2021 compared to 12% in 2020. The SMMT suggested this was partly due to the May 2020 performance being distorted by the COVID-19 lockdowns as new cars could only be purchased through click and collect or delivery, giving rise to variable purchasing patterns.

The lockdowns also had a marked effect on petrol and diesel sales, plummeting -97.3% in April 2020 to allow for BEVs to scoop a 31.8% share of the market.

Looking at 2021 as a whole, 54,051 BEVs have been sold compared to 22,054 in the same period in 2020, representing a 145.1% change and 7.5% of the market compared to 4.3% in 2020.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “Demand for electrified vehicles is helping encourage people into showrooms, but for these technologies to surpass their fossil-fuelled equivalents, a long term strategy for market transition and infrastructure investment is required.”

The SMMT figures come on the same day as separate statistics looking into electric vehicle (EV) sales were released from New AutoMotive, which instead found that there were 11,769 sales of BEVs in May 2021 compared to 2,224 in May 2020. This puts the market share at 8.36% compared to 12.29% for May 2020.

Tesla led sales in the month, with 1,648 purchases, followed by Volkswagen with 1,560 and Hyundai with 1,065.

When it comes to the percentage of a manufacturer’s total registrations, however, Porsche held the top spot, with 37% of all new Porsches being fully electric. Other brands to have solid sales were Renault, Hyundai and Nissan, with 26%, 19% and 16% of their new car sales being fully electric.

Meanwhile, geographically, New Automotive found sales of new EVs are growing fastest in North East England and Oxfordshire where sales have jumped from 4% of the market to 11% and from 8% to 19% in the last year respectively.

In May, it was announced that Oxford will be the home of Europe’s most powerful EV charging hub, with a range of 300kW, 250kW, 7kW and 22kW chargers to be installed at the site, which is the first of 40 such Superhubs to be created by Pivot Power.

Read more: CURRENT

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I know, you probably haven’t even driven one yet, let alone seriously contemplated buying one, so the prediction may sound a bit bold, but bear with me.

We are in the middle of the biggest revolution in motoring since Henry Ford’s first production line started turning back in 1913.

And it is likely to happen much more quickly than you imagine.

Many industry observers believe we have already passed the tipping point where sales of electric vehicles (EVs) will very rapidly overwhelm petrol and diesel cars.

It is certainly what the world’s big car makers think.

Jaguar plans to sell only electric cars from 2025, Volvo from 2030 and last week the British sportscar company Lotus said it would follow suit, selling only electric models from 2028.

And it isn’t just premium brands.

General Motors says it will make only electric vehicles by 2035, Ford says all vehicles sold in Europe will be electric by 2030 and VW says 70% of its sales will be electric by 2030.

This isn’t a fad, this isn’t greenwashing.

Yes, the fact many governments around the world are setting targets to ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles gives impetus to the process.

But what makes the end of the internal combustion engine inevitable is a technological revolution. And technological revolutions tend to happen very quickly.

This revolution will be electric
Look at the internet.

By my reckoning, the EV market is about where the internet was around the late 1990s or early 2000s.

Back then, there was a big buzz about this new thing with computers talking to each other.

Jeff Bezos had set up Amazon, and Google was beginning to take over from the likes of Altavista, Ask Jeeves and Yahoo. Some of the companies involved had racked up eye-popping valuations.

For those who hadn’t yet logged on it all seemed exciting and interesting but irrelevant – how useful could communicating by computer be? After all, we’ve got phones!

But the internet, like all successful new technologies, did not follow a linear path to world domination. It didn’t gradually evolve, giving us all time to plan ahead.

Its growth was explosive and disruptive, crushing existing businesses and changing the way we do almost everything. And it followed a familiar pattern, known to technologists as an S-curve.

Riding the internet S-curve
It’s actually an elongated S.

The idea is that innovations start slowly, of interest only to the very nerdiest of nerds. EVs are on the shallow sloping bottom end of the S here.

For the internet, the graph begins at 22:30 on 29 October 1969. That’s when a computer at the University of California in LA made contact with another in Stanford University a few hundred miles away.

The researchers typed an L, then an O, then a G. The system crashed before they could complete the word “login”.

Like I said, nerds only.

A decade later there were still only a few hundred computers on the network but the pace of change was accelerating.

In the 1990s the more tech-savvy started buying personal computers.

As the market grew, prices fell rapidly and performance improved in leaps and bounds – encouraging more and more people to log on to the internet.

The S is beginning to sweep upwards here, growth is becoming exponential. By 1995 there were some 16 million people online. By 2001, there were 513 million people.

Now there are more than three billion. What happens next is our S begins to slope back towards the horizontal.

The rate of growth slows as virtually everybody who wants to be is now online.

Read more: BBC

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