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The U.S government has committed billions to the electric vehicle (EV) industry hoping to kick-off a battery-powered evolution. But auto-industry lobbyists fear that the investments are simply not enough and so they are turning to the Obama administration for even more help.
The lobbyists are pushing for more incentives, including additional money for public charging stations, tax breaks for battery producers and credits for installing home chargers. They hope to appeal to Obama's soft spot for advanced vehicles by suggesting that more incentives are needed to meet his goal of one million advanced technology vehicles on our roads by 2015. Lobbyists are pushing for one more thing that will please automakers: eliminating rules that restrict the number of zero-emissions vehicles that can be applied towards meeting CAFE guidelines.
Automotive executives are behind the push for more funding too. They are concerned that the high cost of electric vehicles and the lack of a charging infrastructure will cause buyers to balk at the technology. This latest push for more money is probably one of many to come, but at some point the EV industry will have to survive without outside help.
The lobbyists are pushing for more incentives, including additional money for public charging stations, tax breaks for battery producers and credits for installing home chargers. They hope to appeal to Obama's soft spot for advanced vehicles by suggesting that more incentives are needed to meet his goal of one million advanced technology vehicles on our roads by 2015. Lobbyists are pushing for one more thing that will please automakers: eliminating rules that restrict the number of zero-emissions vehicles that can be applied towards meeting CAFE guidelines.
Automotive executives are behind the push for more funding too. They are concerned that the high cost of electric vehicles and the lack of a charging infrastructure will cause buyers to balk at the technology. This latest push for more money is probably one of many to come, but at some point the EV industry will have to survive without outside help.
[Source: Wall Street Journal]
