ARB Staff Report Concludes Electric Vehicle Costs Are Significantly Higher
25 August 2000
ARB Staff Report Concludes Electric Vehicle Costs Are Significantly Higher
LOS ANGELES--Aug. 24, 2000--Statement by Josephine S. Cooper, President and Chief Executive Officer, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, regarding the release of the California Environmental Protection Agency Air Resources Board Staff Report, "2000 Zero Emission Vehicle Program Biennial Review:"
"The California Air Resources Board (ARB) Final Staff Report clearly outlines two critical shortcomings of the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate: electric vehicle costs will be significantly higher than those for conventional vehicles and the clean air benefits will be minimal at best.
"When the ZEV mandate was originally adopted in 1990, the ARB Staff expected Electric Vehicles (ZEVs) to cost about $1,350 more than conventional vehicles. Today, they estimate the cost to be over $20,000 more. Looking at the benefits, as recently as 1996, the ARB staff expected the ZEV mandate to achieve a reduction in smog-forming emissions of about 14 tons per day by 2010; today that figure is projected to be about one ton per day by 2010. The cost-effectiveness exceeds $1.5 million dollars per ton of smog-forming emissions. This is over 100 times more expensive than any other emission control program adopted by the ARB.
"The report points out that incremental costs for ZEVs will range `up to more than $20,000 for freeway capable ZEVs.' Further, the report concludes that manufacturers will have to produce ZEVs at a net loss or must be subsidized `to mitigate the revenue gap' at least in the initial years of the program. Those subsidies would range between $500 million and $1 billion the first year alone.
"The current mandate, which takes effect in 2003, represents a tenfold increase in the actual number of electric cars currently on the road in California. The ARB staff admits that placing such a significant increase in vehicles and sustaining those sales in the following years will be a significant marketing challenge. While the Alliance and its members support California's clean air goals, it is important that we bring advanced technology to market when the technology is ready, affordable to customers, and meets customer expectations. The Staff Report indicates that the ZEV mandate does not meet these conditions and is not likely to meet them in the near future.
"Since the mandate was initiated in 1990, automakers have made significant progress in reducing emissions from automobiles. Today's new vehicles are 96 percent cleaner than those produced 30 years ago, and new vehicles in 2010 will be 99 percent cleaner. This significant progress will continue if automakers are allowed to pursue an array of technologies rather than being forced to follow a single method whose costs are too high and benefits too minimal.
"The Alliance urges the Board to direct ARB staff to find more cost-effective alternatives to the ZEV mandate to achieve the same emission reductions as projected in the final staff report.
"The Alliance members will continue to promote market-based, cost-effective solutions rather than mandates, in order to responsibly meet their commitment, not only to the consumer but also to our environment."
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is a coalition of 13 car and light truck manufacturers. Alliance member companies have approximately 600,000 employees in the United States, with more than 250 facilities in 35 states. Alliance members represent more than 90 percent of U.S. vehicle sales. For more information, visit the Alliance Web site at www.autoalliance.org.
