Motor Vehicles: Batteries

(asked on 11th February 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect on the Government's strategy to achieve zero emission cars and vans of carbon emissions in the manufacture of batteries for cars with an annual mileage of less than 10,000 miles.


Answered by
Jesse Norman Portrait
Jesse Norman
This question was answered on 19th February 2019

Through the £246m Faraday Battery Challenge (FBC), the Government is investing in research and innovation projects and new facilities to scale up and advance the production, use and recycling of batteries. Projects funded so far include ones to improve battery lifespan and range, and increase the reuse, remanufacture and recycling of batteries at the end of their lives.

The life of electric vehicle batteries generally depends on numerous factors, which makes it difficult to be precise about average battery life. Car manufacturers are well aware that potential customers are concerned about battery longevity, and many of them offer warranties tailored to the needs of electric vehicle motorists.

A requirement for the Government’s Plug-in Car and Van Grant schemes is that eligible vehicles must have: either a minimum 5-year warranty on the vehicle’s battery and electric drive train as standard; or extra evidence of battery performance to show reasonable performance after three years of use. More generally, battery warranties are getting longer (in mileage and years) as battery technology improves and the industry grows more confident about battery degradation.

The Government has made no assessment of the effect on the battery life of electric cars of charging too frequently, infrequently or using different charge points. However, some vehicle manufacturers are developing ambitious targets for their primary battery life.

The Government’s Road to Zero strategy showed that battery electric vehicles have substantially lower greenhouse gas emissions than conventional vehicles, even when taking into account the electricity source and electricity used for battery production. Between now and 2050 it projects that grid emissions will fall by around 90% with total emissions from electric vehicles falling in parallel.

Reticulating Splines