Across the world, huge efforts are underway to make the transition to renewable energy in the race against climate change.
Key to this transition is the adoption of electric vehicles, and Formula E has become a showcase for the technological revolution that is taking place. But there are concerns that demand for EVs is faltering, putting at risk commitments to phase out petrol and diesel cars within a decade.
To understand more about the various obstacles to EV adoption, Envision’s Race Against Climate Change Automotive Summit in London brought together experts from the automotive industry for a fascinating discussion before a live audience at Tobacco Dock in London.
The event, hosted by Roger Atkins, founder of Electric Vehicles Outlook, came on the eve of the London E-Prix, the finale of the Season 10 Formula E season. Panellists shared insight into some of the current barriers to the adoption of EVs and considered how technological innovation could help, particularly around battery development and superfast charging.
Sylvain Filippi, Managing Director and CTO of Envision Racing,, spoke of the astonishing pace of technological development in Formula E since the sport was launched 10 years ago and how this has had a positive impact on electric road cars.
“We had two goals: to create a really exciting sport, and to drive innovation which would encourage the adoption of EVs,” said Filippi. “There has been huge progress in technology and performance.”
For example, 10 years ago teams needed two cars per driver because of the battery’s limitations. The current car has a power of 350 KW, so close to 500 horsepower, compared to 150KW eight years ago, so more than double the power.
Filippi added: “Our current power train has an energy efficiency of 96%, so we only waste 4% of energy. That is really why electric cars will win, 100% guaranteed, simply because they use three times less energy per mile travelled than a combustion engine.
“Whichever way you get it, this is how it is going to win. It is the only way we will make our transportation carbon neutral.”
Felix Stellmaszek, Senior Partner and Managing Director at the Boston Consulting Group, acknowledged that growth in overall global demand for EVs had suffered a setback, with different growth trends in different parts of the world. EV sales in China remained strong, but demand was flat in markets like Germany, where subsidies or incentives are being phased out. The global EV market was “at a crossroads”, he said.
“What will it take to crack the next wave of EV adopters? In the US 38% are considering an electric vehicle but when you really drill down, they want to have a 350-mile plus range, they want to have 20 minutes or less charging time and they want to have prices south of $50,000. The last time I checked the Hyundai Ionic 6 fulfilled all of these criteria but not many more vehicles.
“There is great opportunity, because we are definitely on the right path. But if you think that we are already there we would be fooling ourselves.”
Hendrick de Zeeuw, Chief Commercial Officer, Teijin Aramid, suggested that geopolitics will play a very big role in EV adoption trends.
“There are different drivers across the world,” de Zeeuw noted.
“The conversations we have in North America regarding climate change and sustainability are completely different to what we talk about in Europe, where they all want to know about your CO2 footprint compared to other suppliers or compared to the competition. If we go to the US, it is a non-discussion.
“However, when we start talking about circularity over there and being able to take products back at the end of life, then that triggers a discussion.”
Doug Johnson-Poensgen is the CEO and Founder of Circulor, which provides a leading solution to industrial, complex supply chain traceability based on AI and Blockchain technology.
He raised concerns over the supply of raw materials that are needed for EVs, particularly batteries.
“There is a global arms race underway at the moment for enough of the raw materials to make enough batteries at the right price point,” Johnson-Poensgen said.
“Many of these raw materials come with a host of challenges around responsible sourcing; think of child labour in the cobalt supply chain, think of deforestation in mining of pig iron in Indonesia or water scarcity in the Atacama Desert which is where lithium brine salts come from.
“Bearing in mind we are all being told we have to drive electric vehicles by 2030 or 2035, that is impossible with the amount of raw materials currently coming out of the ground. Unlike oil, which we burn, almost all of this rock can be recycled. But there are not nearly enough first-generation Hyundai batteries to be recycled. There’s production scrap but there’s not nearly enough of that either.
“Recycling is more sustainable and will produce more of these materials over time. But right now, we have a mining problem.”
John Saffrett, Deputy Chief Executive of Ayvens, the leasing company and global leader in sustainable mobility, believes a “reluctant second wave” of EV buyers is being driven faster on the corporate side by government regulation, while the retail side was being boosted by initiatives such as salary sacrifice schemes or other incentive programmes, which make EVs more attractive to company car drivers.
Saffrett said he remained confident that business would solve some of the barriers to adoption, such as the capacity of batteries and the charging infrastructure.
“I’m an optimist and I’m not worried about that. It will all get solved,” he said. “The energy suppliers will work out how to meet the peaks and troughs and people will have a reality check that range isn’t that big a deal.”
The Race Against Climate Change Automotive Summit highlighted both the strides made and the challenges faced in the transition to electric vehicles. As experts from the automotive industry emphasised, technological advancements in battery efficiency and superfast charging are crucial, but so are addressing geopolitical influences, raw material supply issues, and varying global demand trends.
The insights shared highlight the complexity of achieving widespread adoption of EVs, yet there is optimism that innovation and strategic policies will pave the way. As we navigate this critical transition, the event showed that collaboration across sectors and continued focus on overcoming these barriers will be the key to driving forward the electric revolution.
