36
‘Consumers still buying regular vehi-
cles jointly pay more than EUR 6 bil-
lion in taxes every year,’ Husby adds.
This begs the question: is exempting
e-car owners from paying taxes a real-
istic long-term option? ‘The state has
pledged to support EV transport until
the sector becomes competitive,’ she
says. ‘So, down the line, a small tax
fee may be introduced and fewer
incentives given.’
Norway intends to extend its e-mobili-
ty mission to include public transport.
‘This means anything from buses,
trams and trains – and even ferries.’
Ferries are an incredibly popular
means of transport in Norway servic-
ing around eight million passengers
each year across more than 100 differ-
ent routes.
‘Up next are big island cruise type fer-
ries and electric planes,’ Husby
asserts. She realises it will be a big
challenge to render all domestic air
traffic electric by 2030. ‘Norway is
conducting tests with various models
of electric planes. Sadly, this isn’t
going smoothly and one recently
crashed. There is a lot of work ahead
of us.’
Will it be enough?
‘An important question to ask is: are
there enough metals left to support
the production of all the batteries we
will need in the near future? And how
much more can recycling rates grow?’
asks Professor Mari Lundström of
Aalto University in Finland. ‘We can’t
deny the heavy price volatility for bat-
tery metals such as cobalt or regular
short-term cobalt shortages due to
mining strikes,’ she argues.
Copper deposits are expected to last
for another 37 years. However, if the
current production trend persists, the
James Wattlaan 6
NL-8218 MB Lelystad The Netherlands
T +31 320 40 14 01
E [email protected]
Flight 1549
landed safely
on the Hudson
river partly
thanks to the
aircraft’s SAFT
back-up bat-
tery.
Scandinavia has a long list of e-ferry captains already.
34-35-36-37-38-39_batteryreport.indd 36 30-09-19 16:57
