Volvo has stated that electric car production produces more emissions than petrol equivalents and called on global leaders and energy providers worldwide to invest in green energy.
The Swedish car manufacturer said that the electric version of the car will be more environmentally friendly if it has covered more than 75,000 miles over its lifetime.
To coincide with the COP26 climate summit taking place in Glasgow – and as part of a revolutionary new transparency approach adopted by Volvo – it publishing its latest ‘Life Cycle Assessment’ report for the pure-electric £57,400 C40 Recharge.
Volvo says greenhouse gas emissions during production of its latest EV are nearly 70% higher than a petrol model
Volvo’s report reveals that manufacturing (grey), its C40 Recharge electric vehicle (three bars to the right) has a higher CO2 footprint than a petrol XC40 (left bar). However, the EV has an even lower carbon footprint when used (light blue), no matter how green your electricity mix.
It shows that greenhouse gas emissions during production of the electric vehicle are nearly 70 per cent higher than a petrol model, which is mainly due to the carbon intensity of battery and steel production, as well as from the increased share of aluminium in the plug-in car.
Volvo claimed that the C40 Recharge EV has a lower carbon footprint than the comparable petrol version, but it will still need to be driven approximately 70,000 miles before it compensates for its higher production emissions.
Volvo says the aim of its new reveal-all reports is to encourage decision makers to make improvements so that it and other electric cars can ‘deliver on their true potential in terms of climate benefit’.
It said that if this is done then EVs built and charged using clean renewable energy will have huge potential CO2 reductions.
The Swedish company, now owned by the Chinese group Geely, has already stated its ambitions to become a fully-electric car manufacturer by 2030.
Part of its plan is to roll out a new family of pure electric cars in the coming years, in one of the industry’s most ambitious electrification schedules.
It is aiming to be a climate neutral company by 2040.
Volvo estimated that an electric Volvo C40 would need to travel around 68.400 miles (110,000km), to have a lower total carbon impact than its petrol counterpart. If the former is powered by current global electricity mix, it will only take 30,000 miles (49,000km). It could offset its higher production emissions by driving only 30,000 miles (49,000km) on wind-generated electricity.
To coincide with the COP26 climate summit taking place in Glasgow, Volvo published its latest ‘Life Cycle Assessment’ report for the new £57,400 C40 Recharge (left)
Volvo claims that it is already taking active steps in order to reduce these emissions. These include planned collaborations to develop carbon-free steel and to work with its battery suppliers, to produce 100% renewable energy batteries.
Håkan Samuelsson, Chief Executive of Volvo Cars, said: ‘We made a conscious strategic decision to become a fully electric car maker and an industry leader, but we can’t make the transition to climate neutrality alone.
“We need governments and energy companies around the world to increase their investments in clean power capacity and related charging infrastructure so that fully electric cars can fulfill their promise of cleaner mobility.”
The C40 Recharge Lifecycle Assessment Report stated that aluminium and Li-ion module production have relative high carbon footprints. This contributes approximately 30% to the total footprint for all materials and components within vehicle.
Håkan Samuelsson, Chief Executive of Volvo Cars (pictured), says the industry needs governments and energy firms around the globe to step up their investments in clean energy
It wants to be able achieve climate-neutral manufacturing by 2025 for its own operations. Its European plants use 100% clean electricity while its Torslanda plant in Sweden is already completely climate neutral.
Volvo claims it is already taking proactive steps to reduce these emissions. This includes planned collaborations with its suppliers to develop fossil-free iron and with its battery producers to produce batteries using 100% renewable energy.
According to the company’s website, it aims to reduce the carbon footprint of an average car’s life cycle by 40% between 2018-2025. It also plans on reducing carbon emissions from its supply chain by 25% by 2025.
It hopes to be able by 2025 to achieve climate neutral manufacturing in its own operations.
Its European plants are powered by 100 percent clean electricity. The factory in Torslanda, Sweden, is already completely climate neutral. Its Chengdu and Daqing locations in China are also powered with climate-neutral electricity.
When the C40 Recharge is used by owners, it produces approximately 27 tonnes of CO2 when charged with renewable energy like wind power. The XC40 compact SUV with a combustion engine produces 59 tonnes.
However, when drivers charge their C40 Recharge using an average global energy mix (which is generated for around 60 per cent from fossil fuels), the car’s lifecycle CO2 tonnage can increase to as much as 50 tonnes, significantly reducing the environmental gains versus a traditionally powered car.
Volvo estimated that an electric Volvo C40 would need to travel around 68,400 more miles than its petrol counterpart to leave a smaller carbon footprint, assuming it is powered by the current global electrical mix.
It could, however, offset its higher production emissions by only 30,000 miles if it was charged with greener wind power.
Volvo also confirmed that its sales of electrified vehicles are increasing.
Sales of Volvo Cars’ fully electric models reached 3.1 per cent of the overall sales, 18,261 cars, for the first 10 months of the year and increased to 5.6 per cent, 2,841 cars, for the month of October.
The Swedish company is now owned by the Chinese group Geely. It has already set out its goals to become an entirely electric car maker by 2030.
Volvo has created a new transparency model that exposes the full carbon footprint of all its electric models, from production to use to the end of their lives.
Sales of Volvo Cars’ fully electric models reached 3.1% of the overall sales, 18,261 cars, for the first 10 months of the year and increased to 5.6%, 2,841 cars, for the month of October
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