No, EVs Aren’t Going To Overload Electric Grids
A few weeks ago, right-wing media site NewsMax ran a piece centered around an out-of-context Elon Musk quote. “If we shift all transport to electric than electricity demand approximately doubles … this is going to create a lot of challenges with the grid,” NewsMax quoted Musk as saying, before going on to scare readers about electric vehicles.
In response, I saw a great number of right-wing commentators and their idiotic fans parrot the quote and then further exaggerate it. They even mixed in recent lies by Greg Abbott, telling us that we are already getting screwed by unreliable renewables, and that EVs are only going to make the problem worse. In other words, EVs are going to kill people! Elon Musk said so!
There’s just one problem: basically none of this is true. In this article, I’m going to give readers the lowdown on the grid situation and give you some factual arguments you can use the next time people start sharing that kind of alarmist nonsense.
Point #1: EVs Use Far Less Energy Than Gas & Diesel Vehicles
When people with an axe to grind against EVs tell us about how bad EVs are, they tend to act like they’ll need just as much energy as gas-powered cars do, but in the form of electricity. They act like you’re basically stuffing coal into the “gas tank” of an EV, so you know that it must be worse.
In reality, EVs only use ¼ to ⅓ the energy of a comparable gas-powered vehicle. Why? Because most of the energy of fossil fuels ends up as heat. Gas and diesel vehicles need a big radiator and water pump to get rid of a lot of heat when the fuel is burned. More heat escapes right out the side of the engine block. Even more heat comes out of the vehicle’s exhaust pipe. There’s such an abundance of waste heat, that automakers use some of it to heat the vehicle’s interior in the winter via the heater core.
By the time all is said and done, about ¾ of a gas car’s fuel and ⅔ of a diesel car’s fuel ends up as waste heat that the car needs to shed somehow. The rest of the energy then goes on to be wasted by crappy aerodynamic efficiency, complex drivetrains, and friction braking. Very little ends up actually pushing the vehicle forward.
Let’s talk about brakes for a second. The Law of Conservation of Energy tells us that energy can’t be destroyed. It can only be converted to different forms. All of the energy of a moving vehicle (thousands of pounds of steel, glass, plastic, and rubber) has to go somewhere when you press the brake pedal. Brakes end up turning that kinetic energy into heat.
EVs have a big advantage here. Not only is about 10% of energy lost as waste heat, but when you use the brakes on a Tesla or a Chevy Bolt, the vehicle’s motor gets used as a generator to slow the car down while actually generating electricity instead of waste heat. This is called regenerative braking.
All in all, around 90% of an EV’s energy actually gets used to move the vehicle instead of getting turned into useless and problematic heat. So, no, changing a gas car out for an EV doesn’t mean that the equivalent energy must come from a power plant. Far less overall energy is needed.
Point #2: Load Timing & Variable Grid Demand
Looking at the power grid and the total power produced in simple terms (example: “We’ll need twice as much”) isn’t informative, because the amount of power that the grid delivers to homes and businesses varies hourly. In Phoenix, the electric grid is taxed to the max in the late afternoon, when things are the hottest outside. Everybody and their dogs are running refrigerated air conditioners, and that all adds up to a lot of power.
Fast forward to midnight. The sun set hours ago, and the desert rapidly cools off up to 40 degrees. During the summer, people still need air conditioning, but the compressors (the part that uses the most electricity) only run periodically to keep houses cool. With all of the power demand cut in half, or less, some power plants are set to produce less power and other plants are turned off entirely.
The grid’s wiring has to be built for the maximum power needed, though. You can’t take the average power used in a day and put in wires that can only handle that much power (assuming you don’t want a fire). You have to take the power needs of the grid at their highest peaks on the worst days of the year and design for that, even though you won’t need those beefy wires the rest of the time.
So, in reality, the grid has tons of spare capacity most of the time. In the middle of the night when power is needed the least, grids are often only transmitting half of the power they are capable of sending, or less.
The Arizona example doesn’t apply everywhere, as some places that actually have a winter use a lot of electric power at night for heating. Other places often have a glut of excess solar power during the day that they don’t know what to do with. Sometimes they even have to pay people to take the power.
Fortunately, EVs can charge during off-peak times when there’s extra power capacity. Utilities often offer customers with an EV excellent prices to charge during those off-peak hours, so they set the EV to charge during those times instead of when everyone is competing for power.
Point #3: EV Efficiency Continues To Improve
Finally, it’s worth noting that EVs are getting more efficient. They were already far more efficient than gas-powered vehicles to begin with, but today’s EVs tend to use even less power than the EVs made ten years ago. Improved drivetrains, better aerodynamic efficiency, better battery technology, and even the use of on-board solar panels are all reducing the power needs of EVs.
Vehicles like the Aptera and Sono Sion are even going to be able to operate almost completely independent of the grid, because they’ll produce enough solar power that they just don’t need to be plugged in most days.
When we keep all of this in mind (EVs are more efficient, they can charge when the grid has the most spare capacity, and they’re getting more efficient over time), there’s really no reason to fear EVs overloading grids unless you’re looking for something to dishonestly smear the EV industry with.
Featured image by Aptera.
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The US Department of Energy (DOE) has released an encouraging new report revealing that 90% of wind turbine materials are already recyclable using existing infrastructure, but tackling the remaining 10% needs innovation.
That’s why the Biden administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has allocated over $20 million to develop technologies that address these challenges.
Why this matters
The wind energy industry is growing rapidly, but questions about what happens to turbines at the end of their life are critical. Recyclable wind turbines means not only less waste but also a more affordable and sustainable energy future.
According to Jeff Marootian, principal deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, “The US already has the ability to recycle most wind turbine materials, so achieving a fully sustainable domestic wind energy industry is well within reach.”
The report, titled, “Recycling Wind Energy Systems in the United States Part 1: Providing a Baseline for America’s Wind Energy Recycling Infrastructure for Wind Turbines and Systems,” identifies short-, medium-, and long-term research, development, and demonstration priorities along the life cycle of wind turbines. Developed by researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, with help from Oak Ridge and Sandia National Laboratories, the findings aim to guide future investments and technological innovations.
What’s easily recyclable and what’s not
The bulk of a wind turbine – towers, foundations, and steel-based drivetrain components – is relatively easy to recycle. However, components like blades, generators, and nacelle covers are tougher to process.
Blades, for instance, are often made from hard-to-recycle materials like thermoset resins, but switching to recyclable thermoplastics could be a game changer. Innovations like chemical dissolution and pyrolysis could make blade recycling more viable in the near future.
Critical materials like nickel, cobalt, and zinc used in generators and power electronics are particularly important to recover.
Key strategies for a circular economy
To make the wind energy sector fully sustainable, the DOE report emphasizes the adoption of measures such as:
- Better decommissioning practices – Improving how turbine materials are collected and sorted at the end of their life cycle.
- Strategic recycling sites – Locating recycling facilities closer to where turbines are decommissioned to reduce costs and emissions.
- Advanced material substitution – Using recyclable and affordable materials in manufacturing.
- Optimized material recovery – Developing methods to make recovered materials usable in second-life applications.
Looking ahead
The DOE’s research also underscores the importance of regional factors, such as the availability of skilled workers and transportation logistics, in building a cost-effective recycling infrastructure. As the US continues to expand its wind energy capacity, these findings provide a roadmap for minimizing waste and maximizing sustainability.
More information about the $20 million in funding available through the Wind Turbine Technology Recycling Funding Opportunity can be found here. Submission deadline is February 11.
Read more: The California grid ran on 100% renewables with no blackouts or cost rises for a record 98 days
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Mazda is finally stepping up with plans to build its first dedicated EV. The upcoming Mazda EV will be made in Japan and based on a new in-house platform. Here’s what we know about it so far.
The first dedicated Mazda EV is coming soon
Although Mazda isn’t the first brand that comes to mind when you think of electric vehicles, the Japanese automaker is finally taking a step in the right direction.
Mazda revealed on Monday that it plans to build a new module pack plant in Japan for cylindrical lithium-ion battery cells.
The new plant will use Panasonic Energy’s battery cells to produce modules and EV battery packs. Mazda plans to have up to 10 GWh of annual capacity at the facility. The battery packs will power Mazda’s first dedicated EV, which will also be built in Japan using a new electric vehicle platform.
Mazda said it’s “steadily preparing for electrification technologies” under its 2030 Management Plan. The strategy calls for a three-phase approach through 2030.
The first phase calls for using its existing technology. In the second stage, Mazda will introduce a new hybrid system and EV-dedicated vehicles in China.
The third and final phase calls for “the full-fledged launch” of EVs and battery production. By 2030, Mazda expects EVs to account for 25% to 40% of global sales.
Mazda launched the EZ-6, an electric sedan, in China last October. It starts at 139,800 yuan, or around $19,200, and is made by its Chinese joint venture, Changan Mazda.
Based on Changan’s hybrid platform, the electric sedan is offered in EV and extended-range (EREV) options. The all-electric model gets up to 600 km (372 miles) CLTC range with fast charging (30% to 80%) in 15 minutes.
At 4,921 mm long, 1,890 mm wide, and 1,485 mm tall with a wheelbase of 2,895 mm, Mazda’s EZ-6 is about the size of a Tesla Model 3 (4,720 mm long, 1,922 mm wide, and 1,441 mm tall with a 2,875 mm wheelbase).
Inside, the electric sedan features a modern setup with a 14.6″ infotainment, a 10.1″ driver display screen, and a 50″ AR head-up display. It also includes zero-gravity reclining seats and smart features like voice control.
The EZ-6 is already off to a hot sales start, with 2,445 models sold in November. According to Changan Mazda, the new EV was one of the top three mid-size new energy vehicle (NEV) sedans of joint ventures sold in China in its first month listed.
Will Mazda’s first dedicated EV look like the EZ-6? We will find out with Mazda aiming to launch the first EV models on its new in-house platform in 2027. Stay tuned for more.
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