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October 06, 2011 | Dominic Hofstetter | Travis Bradford

Electric Vehicles 2012: Technology, Economics, and Market

The introductions of the Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF in 2010 marked the beginning of a new era in the transportation industry: the permanent establishment of electric-drive in the mass market for passenger vehicles. Ever-rising and increasingly volatile oil markets and better energy storage technology have suddenly brought electric vehicles (EVs) to the threshold of technical and economic viability. Car manufacturers have begun to take a new interest in EVs, spurred by governments’ attempts to reduce energy dependence and the environmental footprint of the transportation sector. 

This report is a comprehensive account of the strategic opportunities created by the electrification of personal transport. It offers an extensive review of the technological, economic, and political trends shaping the EV industry. By investigating supply and demand drivers, it analyzes the industry trajectory for the next five years. The report relies on supply and demand analysis to assess industry growth and explores how the supply and demand dynamics are impacted by preferences and biases.

Figure: High-Level Electric Vehicle Market Taxonomy

Source: GTM Research

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Report Author

  • Dominic Hofstetter
  • Analyst-at-Large
  • contact

Dominic Hofstetter has extensive experience in conducting industry and technology analysis in a wide range of cleantech sectors, including electric transport, waste management, biochar, energy storage, carbon dioxide recycling, and hydrogen. 

A citizen of Switzerland, he has recently authored a policy report on the state of cleantech business incubation on behalf of the Swiss federal government. Dominic has worked with leading cleantech investors in Europe, such as Hudson Clean Energy Partners, Emerald Technology Ventures, and Zouk Ventures. Before adopting a focus on cleantech, he spent nine years in multiple roles with Credit Suisse, a leading global financial services firm. Dominic has an MSc in Environmental Change and Management from the University of Oxford, an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and a BSc in Finance and Accounting from the University of Applied Sciences, Zurich. 

Report Author

  • Travis Bradford
  • Consultant, President of the Prometheus Institute
  • contact

Travis Bradford is one of the world’s leading experts on innovative energy technologies, markets, and economics. 

As the founder and president of the Prometheus Institute for Sustainable Development, he has pioneered data-driven economic analysis of renewable energy issues. His publications include Solar Revolution: The Economic Transformation of the Global Energy Industry (MIT Press, 2008), as well as many groundbreaking research reports on clean technologies, including solar, biofuels, fuel cells, and ocean power. He is an advisor to Greentech Media and a member of the Solar Board at the Fraunhofer Institute’s Center for Sustainable Energy Systems in Cambridge, MA. 

Bradford has worked in investments and innovation for more than twenty years as an equity investor, entrepreneur, and economist for organizations such as Atlas Capital Investments, the Carbon War Room, Steel Partners, Holding Capital Group, and the Federal Reserve Bank. Since 2008, he has been an adjunct professor of energy innovation at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business MBA Program, Duke University’s joint MBA/MEM Program, and Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). He has advised on finance, entrepreneurship, and energy to a wide audience, including many of the world’s top public and private institutions. 

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value added elements

  • Growth analysis and investment flows for global EV market through 2015.
  • Breakdown of current EV economics and opportunities for reducing capital, battery and EV operating costs.
  • Examination of supply-side manufacturer capacities and constraints to growth.
  • Analysis of demand-side cost benefits, deployment programs and infrastructure constraints.
  • Over 30 strategic profiles of car manufacturers and charging structure infrastructure providers.

strategic inquiries

  • What technologies and companies are vying for market share?
  • How fast will the market grow and what will drive growth?
  • What other infrastructure elements will be required and what are the prospects for those?
  • Are there alternative business models that might help address obstacles?
  • How competitive are EVs relative to ICEs today, and how is this competitiveness expected to change over time?
  • Which technologies will win, and what investment strategies are available to capitalize on that insight?

contact: Tate Ishimuro

Phone: 415.777.9917