Electric cars reduce lifetime emissions even in countries dominated by fossil fuels

Research from independent Norwegian energy research and business intelligence company Rystad Energy appears to lay to rest concerns that the whole life environmental impact of electric vehicles is no better than petrol or diesel cars.

Its analysis shows that battery-powered vehicles contribute at most half the carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) of diesel or petrol cars across their lifecycle, regardless of the country of operation and even in countries where the power grid is dominated by fossil fuels.

And as renewable sources replace coal and gas-fired generation, emissions related to the operation of BEVs could drop by around 85%.

Rystad Energy says its in-depth research of lifecycle BEV and ICE vehicle emissions considers every stage of the manufacturing process and the vehicle’s operation. This includes the manufacturing of the vehicle’s body, powertrain assembly, maintenance, fuel and electricity-related emissions and battery production for BEVs.

The study compared the life cycle emission of battery electric and traditional fuel vehicles in China, USA, Germany, France and India.

As an example for China and under a base case scenario for power generation in China in the next 20 years, the lifecycle emissions of a BEV are about 39 tonnes of CO2e compared to almost 85 tonnes for an ICE vehicle. The difference in the US is even starker. A BEV emits 42 tonnes of CO2e across its life in the US, 58% lower than a petrol or diesel vehicle that emits more than 100 tonnes.

Of these totals, emissions related to the extraction, refining and burning of fossil fuels contribute about 90% of all ICE emissions. The breakdown of emissions across a battery-powered vehicle’s life is directly tied to its electricity consumption and how that power is generated.

Rystad Energy concludes that overall, battery electric vehicles are “clearly the right technology to reduce emissions in the transportation sector”. Furthermore “switching to a BEV will reduce long-term emissions despite a larger environmental impact at the beginning of the vehicle's life.

“Contrary to some claims, electric car adoption is not a fool’s errand,” it concludes, “it will slash emissions in the long run and accelerate the energy transition.”

While the research is purely focused on the emissions comparison between battery electric and traditional-fuel vehicles, Rystad says it is conscious that there are often societal and humanitarian impacts associated with EV manufacturing, battery production and associated mining, but these are beyond the scope of the research.