Solar Mobility

Few people up to know seem to have realised that Solar Mobility has recently become both technically and financially viable. In other words, it is possible to own an electric car, charge it with solar power, and actually spend less money per km driven than with an ordinary car. How is that possible?

The answer to this is that in addition to somewhat favourable tax regimes, both fuel costs and maintenance costs of an electric car are much lower than for an ordinary car. To make a fair comparison is difficult since the ordinary, fuel power car has a much bigger range and can easily be used for long-distance travel, whereas compact size electric cars can typically only be used for distances up to about 150 km before they need to be re-charged (which in principle should also be possible at fast charging stations while the driver enjoys a break). On the other hand electric driving with its smooth, gear-less acceleration offers a more pleasant driving experience than ordinary cars.

For this comparison here we have used an all-electric Nissan Leaf II and a VW Polo with 7-speed double-clutch automatic gearbox. The Leaf is actually bigger and more comfortable inside than the Polo and should rather be compared with a VW Golf, however, we do want to give the fossil comparison car a bit of a head start because it can be driven on long distances, whereas the typical use of a Polo normally involves commuting to work and other short distance travels.

The financial viability for both e-mobility and residential solar PV are being looked at separately, with the regular grid tariff being the common denominator to either calculation. The cost comparison for electric mobility is shown below. It is quite interesting to observe that the all-in km cost of the Leaf with 23 cents is significantly lower than the one of the Polo (26 cents). The business case for residential Solar PV can be found elsewhere.

Notes:

(1) It is here assumed that road tax for all electric vehicles will remain zero for the foreseeable future (i.e. 5 years) in the Netherlands

(2) Fuel consumption Leaf at 0.212 kWh/km (EPA test cycle. Source: Wikipedia) and electricity costs €0.22/kWh

(3) Fuel consumption Polo at 5.3l (average cycle) and fuel costs of €1.647 (average NL at 11/12/2014).