As automotive fuels represent the principal use of petroleum, it is now apparent that the ongoing development of electric car technologies is heralding the end of the age of oil. Electric cars are and will continue to improve exponentially relative to gasoline powered ones. Electric cars are following the same diminishing marginal cost "technology" track as microprocessors, flat screen TVs and solar panels, whereas gas cars are dependent on the use of a polluting, and rapidly depleting scarce resource, characterized by increasing marginal costs of production for new reserves.
Consideration of:
Agree, disagree, other thoughts?
Consideration of:
- the current, massive advantage of electric cars in terms of fuel costs (approximately a 5 to 1 advantage, with a cost of around $2 per 100 km for electric cars v. $10 per 100 km for gas cars);
- the massive advantage enjoyed by electric cars in terms of drive train simplicity (where the primary propulsion components of the gasoline drive train have approximately 100 times as many components as those of electric cars);
- the increasing use by electric cars of zero marginal cost software in place of costly mechanical systems used in gasoline cars;
- the declining costs and increasing performance of lithium ion battery systems (typically improving on the order of approximately 15% a year, on a continuing basis) and the exponentially expanding rates of battery production for automotive applications;
- the undisputed superiority of the driving experience provided by electric cars, as reflected in the unequalled customer satisfaction ratings of the Tesla Model S;
- the rapid rollout of both high speed (DC) and level 2 charging stations and systems on a global basis;
- the increasing recognition of the harm to the planet and the future of our species caused by GHG emissions;
- the ever increasing marginal costs of production of newly discovered petroleum reserves (in terms of both economic and environmental costs);
- the continually falling costs and increasing volumes of solar generated electricity; and
- the ongoing development of the smart grid (energy internet) which will enable software controlled battery electric cars to buffer renewable energy production by buying power when it is in oversupply (prices are low), and supply power to the grid when the demand is high (prices are high),
Agree, disagree, other thoughts?