Electric cars have reduced global oil consumption fivefold in the last five years, becoming the most effective way to reduce the consumption of this fuel, according to a study released today by the organization Transport & Environment (T&E).
The analysis by the European non-governmental organization Transport & Environment (T&E) states that by 2026 100% electric vehicles “substitute 1.2 million barrels of oil per day (1.2% of global oil consumption), compared with 215,000 barrels per day in 2021”.
A statement from the NGO that promotes sustainable mobility, released on the day that the 31st UN Climate Summit (COP31) began in Turkey, notes that electric vehicles (EVs) on the road avoid the annual emission of more than 200 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, a measure used to compare the emissions of various greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.
Although they make up only about 4.2% of the world’s vehicle fleet, EVs already account for “a quarter of all new cars sold” globally, “an increase from 6.6% five years ago”.
T&E also indicates that electric buses already represent 5% of the global fleet, while fully electric trucks are at 1%, though in some countries they exceed 50% of new sales, estimating that these vehicles “avoid consumption of up to 320 thousand barrels per day”.
“Electric vehicles are the most effective way to reduce oil demand,” says Antony Froggatt, director of T&E, cited in the statement.
“Just as previous COPs accelerated the global growth of wind and solar energy, backing electric vehicles at COP31 could generate the same advance, dramatically reducing oil demand and lowering emissions,” he added.
The organization regards the rapid electrification of transport as an essential part of the energy transition, provided that the electricity is generated from renewable sources, a matter that the UN raised today at the opening of the conference, with a call to governments to accelerate the process of changing the energy system.
