“Dirty” truth about electric cars in South Africa – MyBroadband

Electric vehicles (EVs) can run cleaner in South Africa than their petrol and diesel counterparts, even though most of the country’s electricity comes from dirty sources.

While they produce no tailpipe emissions, the electricity EVs consume can be generated using sources that emit pollutants.

That means EVs can have “off-site” emissions for every kilometre they travel.

Eskom’s coal-powered fleet contributes around 80% of its total generating capacity, while it has also made more regular use of diesel-powered peaking stations in recent years.

Therefore, much of the electricity used to charge up an EV in South Africa is likely to be generated from fossil fuels, which produce carbon emissions.

However, the country’s grid emissions factor — the amount of carbon dioxide produced for every kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity generated — has gradually declined over the past few years.

This figure has been influenced by several circumstances — including declining reliance on Eskom’s power and increased reliance on private renewables, primarily solar.

A report by Carbon Footprint Pty Ltd. calculated that South Africa’s grid emissions factor was 0.8665kg per kWh in 2022, compared with more than 1kg/kWh in the years before.

There are also some additional factors to take into consideration when performing a comparison between the effective emissions contribution of EVs

A study published in Science by researchers from Stanford University found that extracting and transporting crude oil and manufacturing petroleum also generated off-site carbon emissions.

The researchers determined that these processes contributed another 30% to the tailpipe emissions of petrol cars and 24% to diesel vehicles.

MyBroadband compared the emissions produced per kilometre for three BMW models with near identical designs and features but different drivetrains — electric, petrol, and diesel.

We found that the emissions per km of the electric BMW iX1 was lower than the petrol BMW X1 and about the same as the diesel-powered X1.

When adding the non-tailpipe emissions generated in the production of petrol and diesel fuel, the EV was the clear clean winner.

EV owners charging their cars with electricity generated from solar have an even lower impact on the environment, while petrol and diesel model owners can do little to reduce their carbon emissions aside from driving more efficiently.

The table below compares the specifications and effective emissions of a BMW iX1, BMW petrol, and BMW diesel model.

Since South Africa’s last grid emissions factor was calculated, the contribution of renewables has increased substantially, including through significant uptake of rooftop solar.

That means that the actual off-site emissions of EVs that rely on a mix of solar and private power is already likely to be lower.

Another major criticism of EVs to consider is that the materials and processes required to produce them can a significantly worse impact on the environment than the same components needed to manufacture similar petrol or diesel models.

It will take a few years of driving before the difference between the lower off-site emissions and the tailpipe and production-related emissions of transport fuels to make up for that impact.

It is also important to note that roughly 70% to 90% of the heaviest part of the car — the battery — is recyclable, with ongoing development focused on making the packs nearly 100% recyclable.