Buying an electric vehicle – and pairing it with a household rooftop solar and battery storage system – is already a no-brainer for Australian consumers, according to new analysis – assuming, of course, that you can find an EV to buy in the first place.
The analysis from Accenture and financial services firm Plenti says that EVs are already competitive with ICE cars (those burning petrol or diesel in internal combustion engines) over a 15-year period. But if powered by rooftop solar, buying an EV is clearly a cheaper option.
“Households that can install a solar and battery system, combining EVs with solar and a battery could save thousands of dollars over 15 years compared to owning an ICE car and using grid power,” the report says.
“Most people believe EVs are more expensive over their lifecycle than internal combustion vehicles – especially if they’ll be charging their EV from the grid,” says Plenti CEO Daniel Foggo.“This perception remains a key reason why many people are yet to make the switch to electric.
“However, this perception is no longer accurate. Our study reveals that EVs are now cost-competitive with conventional cars over their lifecycle if charged from the grid. Even better, households charging their EV from a home solar-battery system can expect to save up to $12,000 over a 15-year period.
“Switching to an EV is now a no-brainer for most Australians.”
It should be said that the assumptions made by the report are pretty conservative. It assumes annual kms travelled of no more than 12,000kms. (This author has done 80,000 kms in 30 months in his EV, and most people looking at an EV are likely to have higher usage than that assumed).
It also bases its calculations on a petrol price of $1.60 a litre, and most consumers are paying around $2 a litre now. And it assumes that most ICE cars consume no more than 7 litres of fuel per 100kms, which sounds pretty optimistic.
