New analysis has revealed how electric vehicle drivers will be protected from price hikes resulting from global instability that will negatively impact petrol vehicles.
The current instability in the Middle East is predicted to see a barrel of oil rise to around $100 and $120 a barrel, according to new analysis from the Energy & Climate intelligence Unit (ECiU).
According to the ECiU analysis, petrol car drivers will have to pay significantly more to fuel their vehicles. By assessing the past relationship between the price of a barrel of oil and the price of a litre of petrol in the UK, it has been found that oil trading at $100 a barrel could see the price of a litre of petrol jumping from 135p to 150p – this would cost drivers doing 8,000 miles a year almost £140 more to fill their cars.
If the price of a barrel of oil jumps to $120, the price of petrol could increase to around 170p a litre, increasing annual fuelling costs by over £320 a year.
But price caps on electricity until June “will shield drivers of EVs from current shocks”, the ECiU said. At present, EVs are £870 cheaper to charge than petrol on average, but this would rise to more than £1,000 a year – and as high as £1,200 a year.
Gas prices are set to push up electricity prices from July – but renewables will reduce the impact, with large wind farms cutting the wholesale power price by a third in 2025.
In addition, even with higher electricity prices, EVs remain cheaper than petrol cars, with fuelling costs of less than a third even during the gas crisis of 2022.
Colin Walker, Head of Transport at the ECIU, said:
“This isn’t the first time that wars and global shocks have left British drivers facing a jump in their fuel bills, and it won’t be the last. But with over 1.8m EVs now on the UK’s roads, there are an increasing number of drivers who are much more protected from these spikes in fuel prices.
“Accelerating the transition to EVs – increasingly powered by electrons generated by British wind and solar farms – will help the UK end its dependency on foreign oil and protect its drivers from volatile markets over which we have no control. Oil is traded internationally, so trying to squeeze more out of the North Sea has little impact on the price paid at the pump.
“The UK car industry is producing ever more electric cars – the electric Nissan Leaf is already rolling off the production lines in Sunderland, while production of JLR’s new electric models is expected to start in the West Midlands this year.”
Image courtesy of Green Car Guide
