Mercedes CEO says electric vehicles are inevitable for China, hints at high oil prices
Remember $4.00 per gallon gasoline? Daimler CEO Dr. Dieter Zetsche made comments at the Beijing Auto Show that hint at high oil prices and much more in the near future:
“If you look at the population and the growth here [in China], you quickly reach the conclusion that it would be unthinkable to provide these people with traditional gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles. There just isn’t enough oil for that. So there has to be personal transportation that is not dependent on oil and is CO2-free to the greatest possible extent.”
Zetsche’s comment signals a new outlook from the maker of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars. The CEO envisions a future in which the world is forced to find new sources of energy for personal transportation. Daimler is clearly anticipating the approach of high oil prices – and potential oil shortages – as growth in China, India, and other emerging markets begins to strain global resources.
As Renault-Nissan CEO and fellow electric vehicle proponent, Carlos Ghosn said at the Tokyo Auto Salon a few months ago: “If all your transportation relies on one commodity, you’re in trouble.”
Though EVs run solely on electricity, the energy they need can come from a diverse range of sources like solar, wind, nuclear, coal, and natural gas. Though it will take time to build additional power plants and a public charging infrastructure, Ghosn and Zetsche see a need for this kind of flexibility in an oil-strained future.
Daimler is currently producing about 1,000 electric vehicles for a real-world market test and is involved with Chinese automobile company, BYD, to design and build an electric vehicle tailored specifically for the Chinese market. Nissan intends to launch their first mass-market electric vehicle, the Leaf, later this year. Its French partner, Renault will launch an all-electric sedan called Fluence in 2011.
Other manufacturers are ramping up their EV efforts, as well. Chevrolet is due to launch their extended-range electric vehicle, the Volt, in a few short months. And as we reported here a few weeks ago, BMW recently announced a new manufacturing plant in Washington State that will produce lightweight body panels for their own upcoming “megacity” electric vehicle in 2013.
Assuming that Dr. Zetsche’s bold prediction for the future is correct, how high would fuel prices have to rise to get you to switch from a gasoline- or diesel-powered car to an electric vehicle?
One Comment
Electric cars can be less expensive to me than gasoline. I would move to electric cars at the current price of gasoline in the US (slightly higher than USD3/gallon).
We do need to solve the problem of range. The Chevy Volt uses a combination of gas and electric, but that misses the point.
Better Place is rolling out a solution that provides a battery swap in about a minute. This is clearly the fastest way to “fill up the electrons” in the battery. This system is under field test in Japan and is currently being rolled out in Israel and will be rolled out next in Denmark. Biggest issue that I see is that we will need enough battery swap stations.