China and EU obliterate the US in EV production

Despite the fact that American giants like GM, Ford, and Tesla have bet big on the production of electric vehicles, the US is still lagging behind in the EV market. This is confirmed in the latest report by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT).

Unsurprisingly, China is the largest electric vehicle producer and makes up nearly half (44%) of the global EV production through 2020, with 4.6 million units in manufacturing and sales.

But while one would expect to find the US at least in second place, it’s Europe which represents the following 25%. It has made 2.6 million EVs this year and sold 3.2 million.

So, the States only come third, with 18% of cumulative EV manufacturing, which is, in fact, down from 20% in 2017.

ICCT concludes that this development has to do with two main factors that favor the growth in China and Europe: better regulations, infrastructure, and incentives, and more substantial commitments from global EV automakers.

Specifically, out of the total $345 billion EV investment announced by global car makers, only 15% seems to be destined for the US, with measly 5% being actively directed to US assembly plants for the increase of electric vehicle production.

Similarly, the automakers might have made statements about a 22 million annual sum of EV sales by 2025, but only 2.3 million of them are planned to be manufactured in the United States.

And with merely 7 of the 44 American major assembly plants committing to produce only electric vehicles from 2025 onwards, the US is seriously risking falling behind its competitors indefinitely.

Do EVs excite your electrons? Do ebikes get your wheels spinning? Do self-driving cars get you all charged up? 

Then you need the weekly SHIFT newsletter in your life. Click here to sign up.