China is winning on electrification, and that’s a good thing
The streets of Shanghai are quiet. Or at least much quieter than most other major cities in different parts of the world. That’s because the vast majority of vehicles in Shanghai, cars, motorbikes, busses, are nearly all electric. It’s not just the noise reductions that citizens of Shanghai are enjoying, it’s also improved air quality, and reduced cost of transportation. Recharging an electric vehicle can be 1/5 to 1/10 the cost of refueling a gas-powered vehicle. Better still if the EV is charged from solar.
As China moves faster and faster towards electrification, other countries see themselves falling further behind. Eventually, the benefits that China will be enjoying will become impossible to ignore and countries who have been lagging in their electrification transformation, will be forced to catch up if they want to stand any chance at competing economically.
The days of solar and batteries being “expensive” are well behind us. They are now the cheapest and fastest to deploy forms of energy. Gas generators and other non-renewables will be the backup to the backup (when the sun isn’t shining/wind isn’t blowing, and the batteries have been depleted).
Many parts of the world are still fighting hard against EV’s and renewables. People should definitely have a choice over what kind of car they drive and whether or not they want solar panels installed in their areas or on their homes, but clinging to old technology simply delays received benefits and increased quality of life.
Consider how many people you knew that claimed they would be keeping their old “flip phone” and weren’t interested in texting because they could just call someone. Are any of those ideas still held by anyone? Those are the same types of people that will continue paying hundreds of dollars a month for gas when they could simply plug in at home or at the local charging station for a fraction of the cost. These are the final holdouts of new tech, and it will only end up costing them.
Renewable energy targets for countries that extend beyond 2050 will have to be moved up. Some are out as far as 2065! These countries will simply be unable to compete with countries that have already made the switch to electrification and automation.
So go ahead and “Drill, baby drill” but those investments will be outcompeted by renewables in very short time, and it will be China who is leading the way, while the rest are forced to try and catch up.