According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the thriving SUV market is leading to higher oil demand today and could make future carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions targets more difficult to achieve.
New analysis by the IEA shows that global CO2 emissions from SUVs reach nearly 1.1 billion tons by 2022, overshadowing increased sales from electric cars.
According to the analysis, SUVs are also increasing oil consumption. The IEA says oil use for conventional cars, excluding SUVs, is virtually unchanged from 2021 to 2022. But over that period, SUV-related oil consumption has increased by 500,000 barrels per day. , accounting for one-third of total oil demand growth. , according to the IEA.
Ford Mustang Mach-E 2023
The agency points out that electric SUVs don’t help, noting that they often require larger battery packs, which increases the need for raw materials.
An IEA statement said those risks could be addressed ahead of time through a number of actions: “minimizing the average car size; increasing battery swaps; and investing in swappable battery technologies.” new”. “Those strategies will examine the investment requirements to develop the cobalt, copper, lithium and nickel resources needed to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles.”
Not all modern SUVs are the gas-guzzling cars that once dominated this category, but the extra weight and poorer aerodynamics compared to sedans, hatchbacks, and wagons are detrimental to performance. fruit. SUV is second biggest contributor to the increase in CO2 in the 2010s, a 2019 report found.
Nio EC7 2023
However, there are a number of SUVs where the companies have emphasized that efficiency is a top priority. lucid gravityfor example, and Nio EC7. And not every auto industry executive believes the current SUV hegemony will last forever. Citroën CEO seems to think the switch to electric cars will kill SUV.
In the United States, however, some regulatory changes will be needed for that to happen. The federal government continues to encourage automakers to produce more SUVs—both in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulation, and in the offers it is offering electric car buyers.
