The Acceleration of Electric Vehicles Pushes Real Estate Developers to Adapt
Electric Vehicles bring opportunities and challenges for the Real Estate Industry
The global Electric Vehicle (EV) industry is emerging and is forcing the world to adjust. According to the Australian Electric Vehicle Council, EVs account for 14% of new car purchases globally. China is leading the way making up 28% of car sales in 2022, and the U.S. made up 7% of total sales.
Nationally, it is projected that 75% of vehicles in the U.S. could be electric by 2035, says Car Scoops. Nine states including California has committed to selling only Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) from 2035. ZEVs consists of plug-in-hybrids, battery electric vehicles, and Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency, stated that Greenhouse gas emissions from transportation account for 29% of total U.S. greenhouse gases. Electric Vehicles are supposedly being introduced to reduce carbon emissions.
Advantages
Parking is a major piece to real estate developments. It behooves developers today to plan and implement parking structures that fits the way society is growing towards.
Renae Gasmier, head of Sustainability Consulting, Australia JLL, says, “By building EV charging infrastructure, we are not only meeting growing demand, but also creating a whole new source of power-grid support because the grid can also draw or store power from EV batteries.
According to a 2022 JLL survey of investors, buildings deemed “green” drive higher occupancies, rents, tenant retention, and asset values.
The Downside
While there are notable benefits to adding EV charging structures to properties –– the rise of EV has its share of drawbacks that are of great concern.
There are two primary environmental costs relating to an electric car –- the manufacturing of batteries and the energy source to power those batteries, says Earth.org.
During the manufacturing process of EVs it is estimated that up to 60% more carbon is produced than in the process of manufacturing petrol or diesel vehicles. This is mostly due to the mining and refining of cobalt and lithium materials that are needed for the battery.
Water scarcity is a looming concern on nearly every continent. During the refining process of lithium, billions of liters of water are lost from delicate ecosystems, according to the Guardian.
Ultimately, over the life-cycle of EVs they do produce less carbon than current modes of transportation. However, if city planners and developers want to do their part in combating climate change we should cut down on our dependance to cars.
This can look like adding green and integrated public transportation systems, building walkable communities, and incentivizing biking and car sharing. Green buildings and green transportation alternatives will not single handily reverse climate change but it is an essential piece and we all play a role.