A cost benefit analysis of electric vehicles: a UK case study

Interest in electric vehicles is growing worldwide because of increasing oil prices, uncertainties concerning oil security and increased awareness of environmental issues. In this study, lifetime net present values of costs and benefits are compared between electric and fossil fuelled cars. Key questions to be answered are whether it is beneficial to purchase an electric car from a private and societal point of views. The results of the analysis show that the lifetime costs of an electric, petrol and diesel car are comparable in terms of private costs, with the cost of an electric car being slightly higher than a petrol or diesel car. However, in terms of social costs, an electric car is much more expensive than a petrol or diesel car. The high cost of batteries, long charging times and a lack of charging points are among key issues which need to be addressed for the large scale uptake of electric vehicles. Government support is needed to promote technology developments of batteries and recharging network.