New study: Charging an EV is equivalent to filling up a traditional car with gasoline worth $17.33 per gallon

12/19/2023 / By Laura Harris

A new study conducted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) has found that the true cost of charging an electric vehicle (EV) is equivalent to filling up a traditional car with gasoline worth $17.33 per gallon.

The report, titled “Overcharged Expectations: Unmasking the True Costs of Electric Vehicles,” shows that $22 billion in government handouts to EV owners and manufacturers cover additional expenses from raw material sourcing to battery charging. This, in turn, reveals that, with government subsidies and hidden expenses, the true cost of charging an EV is equivalent to $17.33 per gallon of gasoline, far exceeding the often-cited $1.21 per gallon.

TPPF also points out that the $17.33 per gallon estimate does not include additional subsidies from the Inflation Reduction Act. Moreover, the report claims that an average EV will end up costing $53,000 or more, but ratepayers and taxpayers will keep subsidizing nearly $12,000 of this cost for at least 10 years.

The report claims that the federal government subsidizes EVs more than it does wind and solar electricity generation and even more than hybrid vehicles, even though hybrids offer a more efficient way to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions.

“They use a much smaller battery, offer excellent driving range and performance, and don’t require any upgrades to our electric infrastructure. Toyota estimated that 90 hybrid batteries can be made from the same amount of raw materials as one EV battery and that those hybrids will reduce emissions 37 times more over their lifetime than one EV,” notes the report. “However, hybrids receive far fewer subsidies and regulatory favors than EVs, as the prevailing political consensus is ‘all EV or nothing.”

EV push will collapse electric grids

The report further delves into the challenges posed by the energy density of gasoline and diesel, arguing that recharging EVs requires both a significant amount of electricity and expensive infrastructure upgrades to the electrical grid.

It claims that most major utilities are unable to meet the necessary capacity additions to support proposed EV mandates, leading to requests for customers to recharge during off-peak hours. (Related: EV owners complain about “logistical nightmare” caused by lack of charging stations.)

A report from PJM Interconnection, one of the major regional electricity transmission groups in the United States, supports the claim of the study.

PJM Interconnection warns that if current trends persist, the reliability of bulk electricity will deteriorate, leading to an increase in rolling blackouts and other grid-related problems. The report also points out a “timing mismatch between resource retirements, load growth, and the pace of new generation entry,” essentially indicating that the push for green energy is happening at a time when overall power generation is diminishing.

The report has exposed the stark reality that much of the electricity in the U.S. still comes from non-renewable sources such as coal and oil. In short, the ambitious Agenda 2030, seeking to transition a significant portion of the energy consumption of the U.S. to electricity to reduce environmental impact, is still far from possible.

“Perhaps if D.C. politicians and bureaucrats stop trying to force Americans to build and buy their preferred types of vehicles, the cleaner and brighter future that they imagine will actually materialize,” the TPPF concludes.

Head over to FlyingCars.news for more stories about EVs and the difficulties that come with owning them.

Watch Next News Network‘s Gary Franchi explaining why some states aren’t happy with the Biden administration’s nationwide EV charging network.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.