The National Research Council has released a new report, Transitions to Alternative Transportation Technologies - Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles, that concludes that the costs of plug-in hybrid electric cars are high and unlikely to decrease drastically in the near future.  Subsidies in the tens to hundreds of billions of dollars will be needed if plug-ins are to achieve rapid penetration of the U.S. automotive market. Even with these investments, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles are not expected to significantly impact oil consumption or carbon emissions before 2030.

The report also found that in addition to cheaper batteries, access to electric outlets in parking spaces is needed as well as advanced smart meters and electrical system upgrades for home recharging.   The National Resource Council recommends that the U.S. needs to adopt a “portfolio approach” to curbing oil use.   “This should include increasing the fuel efficiency of conventional vehicles and pursuing research, development, and demonstration into alternative strategies, including the use of bio-fuels, electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles.”   We agree. What do you think?

There is also a new web page that incorporates most of the computer simulation work behind the NHA’s “Energy Evolution” paper.  The site is intended to provide technical details of the various alternative vehicles (hybrids, plug-ins, biofuels, battery EVs and fuel cell EVs), including quick links to the latest papers and reports in this field.