The path that electric vehicle penetration is currently on looks strikingly like the remarkable path solar has been charting – and perhaps not without reason.
The latest snapshot of the global PV market – the Photovoltaic Power Systems Program (PVPS) – from the International Energy Agency includes the above chart, shows an interesting symmetry between the two game-changing, low-carbon technologies.
While the report notes that the link between PV development and EVs is “not yet straightforward,” the IEA says it could emerge as a reality – and rapidly.
“To charge electric vehicles during work hours, the need for additional energy sources will become a key, while concepts such as virtual self-consumption will rapidly get the favors of many,” the report says.
“The accelerated development of the EV market could be compared to the development of the PV market, with similar penetrations.
“With more than 1.2 million electric vehicles sold in 2017 (or 1.5 percent of the global car market), the penetration of this industry could reach the same level as the PV penetration in the power sector in the coming years and then evolve even faster.”
The arrival of the cheaper and more abundant solar PV helps to facilitate the unstoppable rise of the other: renewable energy solar charged battery electric vehicles.