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The Deregulation Of The United States And Electric Vehicles ( Evs )

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In 2016, there were 17.55 million cars sold in the US and electric vehicles (EVs) made up less than 1%, accounting for 150,000 vehicles, – up from 17,500 sales in 2012. EV’s have been slow to capture market share, although their growth may allude to a tipping point in the near future. Over the past decades many disrupting technologies have followed similar slow growth in the early years, but reached a breakthrough point followed by years of exponential growth. The automobile needed Henry Ford’s assembly line to reach mass-market production and its practicality was helped by urbanization and highway infrastructure projects through the 1920s. The microwave experienced slow growth until it was made to fit on a countertop; color TVs existed …show more content…

These manufacturers know that without the $7500 tax credit many customers would not have made the move to an electric vehicle. Thus, automakers have prepared for this economic reality by rapidly lowering their costs and improving performance. Experts believe battery packs need to reach a price of $100/kWh for EV growth to take off. When this battery price point is reached, the vehicles may be competitively priced against ICE cars without the need of tax credits or government incentives. Current top model EVs are priced between $30000-$40000 and the battery pack currently makes up ¼ of that price. Between 2010 and 2016, battery pack costs were reduced 77% from $1000/kWh to $227/kWh. Tesla has been producing packs for $190/kWh since early 2016 and expects a further 30% reduction once full operations begin at their Gigafactory – putting them on track to reach the $100/kWh price point before their credits run out in 2020. GM claims its 2017 Chevy Bolt battery cells will be made for $145/kWh (roughly $190/kWh at the pack level). Original Department of Energy targets were for $300/kwh by 2015 and $125/kwh by 2020, but many companies have been lowering costs at a faster pace annually than could have been expected. Companies are improving battery technology at rapid rates and it looks like many manufacturers will be below the price parity level before their tax credits phase out. Cheaper battery packs do more than

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