Events from August 23 - 29, 2024 with news covering Apple, Cadillac, Chevrolet, General Motors, GMC, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Piston Group, Polestar, Renesas, Rivian, Samsung, Tesla, Tokyo Electron, and Toyota, by Elm Analytics. Weekly news for automotive supply chain professionals.
That's a really good point, Mark. It might not be that the EV market is moving slowly, but rather that expectations were set a bit too high. With all the excitement around EVs and big goals from both companies and governments, it’s easy to see how some projections might have been overly optimistic. There are still real challenges—like building up charging infrastructure, managing supply chain issues, and getting more consumers on board. So, in some ways, it might just be the case of the hype outpacing reality for now.
If I look back at what the UK govt tried to orchestrate circa 4 years ago for battery giga-factories, charging infrastructure, etc, etc, and couple that with optimism for 'greenness" particularly across Europe, a lot of positive assumptions seem have been inferred. However, from a financial risk-management perspective I'm not convinced there was much more than hopefullness for many boards in their commitments.
You’re absolutely right - there was a lot of optimism, especially when governments and companies began making bold commitments to EVs and green infrastructure a few years back.
In the US, the Space Race of the 1960s and the expansion of railroads in the 1860s are probably the best examples of swift and successful shifts in technology driven by government support. Both saw significant impacts within around 10 years—whether it was landing on the moon or connecting the country via rail.
Other shifts, like the rise of renewable energy in Europe or the dawn of the internet, had decades of groundwork and support before we saw the exponential growth that fueled their respective booms in the 1990s and 2000s/2010s.
Perhaps with the shift to EVs, we’re just trying to evaluate success too close to the starting line. It might be a case of simply needing more time to see the full impact unfold.
I'm not sure the EV market is truly slower than anticipated. Perhaps it is more likely over-anticipated by company execs?
As ever, this an essential read. Looking forward to tomorrows update.
That's a really good point, Mark. It might not be that the EV market is moving slowly, but rather that expectations were set a bit too high. With all the excitement around EVs and big goals from both companies and governments, it’s easy to see how some projections might have been overly optimistic. There are still real challenges—like building up charging infrastructure, managing supply chain issues, and getting more consumers on board. So, in some ways, it might just be the case of the hype outpacing reality for now.
If I look back at what the UK govt tried to orchestrate circa 4 years ago for battery giga-factories, charging infrastructure, etc, etc, and couple that with optimism for 'greenness" particularly across Europe, a lot of positive assumptions seem have been inferred. However, from a financial risk-management perspective I'm not convinced there was much more than hopefullness for many boards in their commitments.
You’re absolutely right - there was a lot of optimism, especially when governments and companies began making bold commitments to EVs and green infrastructure a few years back.
In the US, the Space Race of the 1960s and the expansion of railroads in the 1860s are probably the best examples of swift and successful shifts in technology driven by government support. Both saw significant impacts within around 10 years—whether it was landing on the moon or connecting the country via rail.
Other shifts, like the rise of renewable energy in Europe or the dawn of the internet, had decades of groundwork and support before we saw the exponential growth that fueled their respective booms in the 1990s and 2000s/2010s.
Perhaps with the shift to EVs, we’re just trying to evaluate success too close to the starting line. It might be a case of simply needing more time to see the full impact unfold.