Retaining Federal EV Tax Credit Vital for U.S. Energy Security and Beating China to EV Market Dominance

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2019
Contact: Alex Adams | 202.461.2374 | aadams@secureenergy.org

Washington, D.C.—In response to the White House announcing its intention to eliminate the federal electric vehicle (EV) tax credit in its proposed budget, in order to save the U.S. government $2.5 billion over 10 years, Electrification Coalition (EC) President and CEO Robbie Diamond issued the following statement:

“Eliminating the federal EV tax credit not only exacerbates the economic and national security dangers posed by our oil dependence, but also gives China a vital advantage in the global EV race. Electricity is a bona fide American-made fuel, and switching to electricity will help the Trump administration hit its energy dominance goals by cutting domestic oil consumption and maximizing our petroleum exports.”

The United States is in a race with China to dominate the next century of transportation. We cannot let China dominate the industry by monopolizing the supply chain, protecting its domestic market, and engaging in economic espionage for electric vehicles. Supporting the domestic industry—by retaining the most prominent incentive for consumer adoption—will maintain American global competitiveness.

Accounting for one-fifth of daily global supply, the United States is the world’s largest oil consumer—70 percent of which is used to power a transport system that is 92 percent dependent on oil. Even as the United States reaches historic highs in oil production, the uniquely global nature of oil pricing—in which a disruption in supply anywhere affects prices everywhere—means the United States will always be exposed to oil price volatility, regardless of how much oil we produce. EVs represent one of America’s best opportunities to enhance U.S. energy security, by decoupling our transportation network from oil price volatility.

“Getting rid of the federal EV tax credit to save $2.5 billion is penny wise and pound foolish: The U.S. military spends at least $81 billion every year on policing global oil supply lines, and U.S. consumers and businesses will realize significant savings by switching from gasoline to electricity. While gasoline prices have varied wildly from almost $4 per gallon in 2009 to around $2.50 today, electricity has stayed constantly at a price equivalent to approximately $1 per gallon,” Diamond added.

The cost to fuel an EV is approximately half that of its conventional gasoline counterpart—generating meaningful savings for American households and businesses. EVs also benefit the broader U.S. economy and federal budget: Between 1970 and 2015 alone, $3.4 trillion was transferred from the United States to foreign oil producers simply to account for oil price inflation by OPEC.

 

About the Electrification Coalition

The Electrification Coalition is a nonpartisan, non-profit group of business leaders committed to promoting policies and actions that reduce America’s dependence on oil by facilitating the deployment of electric vehicles on a mass scale. The members of the Electrification Coalition are leaders of companies representing the entire value chain of an electrified transportation system.

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Amy Malaki

Amy Malaki is the head of policy and sustainability at SkyNRG and SkyNRG Americas, pioneering global leaders in sustainable aviation fuel production and supply. Prior to SkyNRG, Amy was the associate director for the transportation portfolio at the ClimateWorks Foundation where she developed philanthropic investment strategies to advance a sustainable, equitable and low-carbon mobility system. She also pioneered the organization’s international aviation decarbonization strategy. Prior to that she focused on Asia business development at Better Place, a Silicon Valley electric vehicle network startup. She has a B.A. in Chinese and China studies from the University of Washington and an M.A. in international policy studies (energy and environment) from Stanford University.