Electric Vehicle Prices Could Be Slow to Follow Battery Price Drop

EV World reported that while the price of lithium-ion batteries are bound to drop, consumers should not anticipate the cost of electric vehicles to follow suit until standardization in the auto industry is reached.

According to the report:

the cost of customization of the systems means that, while the price of an electric vehicle is likely to fall, the drop will not be significant, even if companies like LG dramatically cut battery costs. Given that the systems represent part of the overall vehicle development, and competition is a key component in that equation, industry-wide standardization will be difficult to achieve.

The report goes on to state that:

With an increase in demand, the hope is that ultimately the overall price of hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles using lithium-ion batteries will begin to drop, even with a lack of standardization in the electronics systems operating the batteries. A number of factors help to support this belief, including the fact that the marketplace has already become more accepting of hybrid vehicles (due in no small part to their cost-saving abilities) and that car makers continue in their endeavor to reach their decreased emission mandates from government authorities.

Click here to view the full report.