Current electric vehicles have driving ranges approaching 300 miles and can go over 120,000 miles with just a 10% reduction in maximum range. For EVs, when the battery degrades the range is reduced, which is not catastrophic – you can still drive your EV, just not as far on one charge.
And then there’s the second life of EV batteries using them for stationary storage, which is something our utilities are pursuing. We produce a lot of solar energy in the US and if we don’t use it or store it while the sun is shining, when the sun goes down, it’s gone. There is a lot of research in progress now to transition EV batteries for stationary energy storage. With proper usage, an EV battery can last many years with minimal degradation.
Finally, after being used to store energy, 95% of the battery materials can be recycled – even rare minerals like cobalt can be purified and reused.