EV Sunset?
Are EVs on their way down?
A little over a year ago, I wrote a blog called The New Oil. Given various governments' push, Hydrogen looked like the next oil and batteries were just a transitory technology.
GAIL was set up by the Government of India in 1984 as a company that was to build the gas distribution infrastructure for India as LPG utilisation was rising. Hydrogen is a gas and can piggybank on the same infrastructure. Also, GAIL is one of the key suppliers of LPG for autos and buses in India.
Hence, at the time, I put my money where my mouth was and bought a few shares in GAIL. A little more than 1 year later - up 100%.
In the meantime, British Volt, Proterra Inc., Volta Trucks, Blackstone Technologies, Alelion Energy Systems, Lordstown Motors, WM Motors and EnerDel Inc. have all filed for bankruptcy.
Also,
Source: Google
Amazon had invested in Rivian and placed an order for 100,000 trucks. At this point, If Amazon rolls back the order for any reason, it would bring the company to its knees.
Source: Google
Lucid has been struggling to up its production and the company has been making all kinds of product choices including trying to focus on defence.
They should probably just watch Jon Stewart’s “The Problem” episode on Burn Pits. It describes how the US military burns all its waste even at the expense of the health of the poor people who serve the force. Sure, they are going to choose electric vehicles!
Over and above all this, the number of EV companies that are profitable can be counted on fingers. On one hand.
On the other end of the spectrum -
The second-generation Toyota Mirai is a handsome sedan with a surprising commitment to the fundamentals of a sports sedan. It is also the only mass-market hydrogen-powered car available today, making it one of the most unique and limited experiences in the entire automotive world. Despite that fact, Toyota sold more examples of the humble Mirai in the U.S. than it did of the flagship Supra last year.
Source: Road And Track
The Toyota Mirai is the only Hydrogen car on the market at the moment although BMW also has a model that has not been released their car for commercial purchase.
In the meantime, many buses and trucks are in the works. Electric mobility does not lend itself well to those kinds of applications. Think inter-city trip by bus where the vehicle has to go 800 km. Or a dump truck that needs to carry 40 Tons. You will probably need just as many tons of battery!
That is a lot of action coming in this sector. Keep watching as a slew of announcements arrive over the next 5 years.