Battery expert puts an end to cheap dreams
E-cars should replace combustion engines and quickly. The price plays an important role here: If nobody can afford an electric car, switching from petrol or diesel will not work. But the big slide in prices will be a long time coming.
Contents
Electric car prices: no relief for customers in sight
You have to be able to afford electric cars. That is true so far, because the Stromer are more expensive to produce than comparable petrol or diesel engines. Buyers notice this in the price. In recent months, the Stellantis boss, among others, has warned that many people will no longer be able to afford a car.
Actually, as the development progresses, the price problem with e-cars should be manageable. Experts have calculated that the prices for combustion engines and electric cars could be the same as early as 2024. Yann Vincent, head of the car battery manufacturer Automotive Cells Company (ACC), believes that it will soon be the case that Stromer will become significantly cheaper when you buy them unlikely.
The fuel is too expensive? Are you looking for the cheapest gas station? Then download our refueling app. There you will find the lowest petrol prices in your area.
The TankenApp is a product of Ströer Media Brands GmbH, to which GIGA also belongs.
But on the contrary he expects prices to go up – which can currently be observed at Tesla, for example. The problem is the raw materials for batteries: “It is obvious that it poses a threat to the ramp-up of electromobility if the prices for raw materials such as lithium or nickel remain at the current level. Because they drive up the cost of electric cars,” says Vincent (source: Handelsblatt).
The metals are required for the production of batteries in electric cars and are said to account for around 80 percent of the total costs of a battery. In some cases, raw material prices have more than doubled within a year. When it comes to the purchase price, electric cars only stand a chance against petrol and diesel because of the environmental bonus. Yet “this gap could widen. That wouldn’t be good,” the CEO continued.
Is it worth buying an electric car now?
Environmental bonus helps against price explosion for electric cars
In his view – and that of other industry experts – nothing will change until new sources for the metals are tapped and global production picks up. This can be expected in 2024 to 2025 at the earliest. It could take longer for this to show up in the purchase price. Until then, only the environmental bonus can help, for which there is a big plus in the room.
