The quiet revolution as EVs charge ahead

Observer

2 days ago

I resisted purchasing an electric vehicle, or EV as they are known now, for years, for the most irrational of reasons: I couldn't stand the arrogance of Elon Musk and couldn't stand the thought that I may be contributing to his insane wealth and his wholly objectionable lifestyle. I don't think I've ever let someone, who I've never met and never will, get under my skin so much. And you must admit that his ubiquitous arrogance and supercilious entitlement, rank his face amongst the world's most 'punchable'
But last week, I made the decision... and purchased my very first EV. It's not special, second-hand, of Chinese manufacture, it's an SUV with the higher driving position offering greater ease of entry and exit. Like all EVs, it's an automatic and has all the safer driving technology available in the marketplace today. I opted for an extended vehicle warranty and service contract with the dealership to minimise maintenance costs going forward and even though I'm still very much in the 'honeymoon' period, I'm enjoying being an EV driver.
My purpose here is not to sell, or convince anyone to 'go electric', as such, but rather to ease you through some of the questions we all have as we consider 'yay' or 'nay', and in any case, I don't see the demand for petrol and diesel falling off a cliff overnight, as developing nations will be utilising both for many decades ahead, so don't worry Oman, the oil and gas industry will not disappear overnight and the Omani government has indicated that their forward planning towards an EV driven future is well in hand.
Until recently, one of the greatest limiting factors facing EVs was vehicle cost. Of course, the earliest EVs were ridiculously expensive, two and three times the cost of conventional motors. However today, the difference is diminishing significantly, to around 30 per cent more and industry sources in the UK are expecting the growing market for EVs to result in a genuine levelling up between now and 2030. The latter date was to be the UK's final year in which petrol and diesel vehicles could be manufactured or sold new, though this date has been extended to 2035 to ensure sufficient charging infrastructure is provided.
In fact, working towards the targeted 300,000 public charging points across the UK, by the July 1 this year only 82,002 all-access charge points had been commissioned. Balancing that, more than 1 million motorists have installed home fast-charger units which cost around RO 500 installed, or much slower trickle-charging three-pin chargers, affectionately termed 'granny-chargers', at around half that cost. Significantly, one major energy supplier is promoting discounts for electricity usage between 11:30 pm and 5:30 am, from 140 baisas per kWh, down to 35 baisas per kWh and with integrated app controls this is genuine economy.
EV sales are rapidly accelerating across the major UK and European dealerships with more than one and a half million EVs now on the UK's roads, with half a million EVs sold during the 12 months to July this year alone. Change is afoot and I have graduated from an interested onlooker, to an enthusiastic advocate, a journey many more will take in the future. Motor industry CEO Carlos Ghosn says 'the time is not just right, but critical', and I guess he was speaking from marketing and environmental perspectives in the same breath, which could be seen as contradictive.
However, what we should be thinking is that we were suspicious of and resisted, planes, trains and automobiles, computers, mobile phones, internet banking and the like, for decades... until we accepted their benefits outweighed the negatives. That's the thing about progress isn't it? Like time, it marches on, relentless, obstinate, unyielding in its determination and is rarely wrong, unlike we mortals.
Will you join the revolution and get ahead of the EV curve? I did and it is so much fun!