The Independent Australian

  Viv Forbes debunks the latest green fad - the electric car, which is essentially a coal burner.

Electricity is not a primary source of energy – it is a way of transmitting energy from primary sources or storages to electric applications and machines. In Australia, 93% of electricity is generated from carbon fuels, 77% from coal. This will not change dramatically in the near future. Therefore most electric cars in Australia will run on coal. Such vehicles will produce more carbon dioxide per kilometre than the petrol/diesel cars they replace.

All vehicles need a method of storing energy while travelling between resupply stations. For cars and trucks, highly concentrated energy in the form of diesel, petrol or gas can be conveniently stored in simple fuel tanks. Electric cars need heavy costly batteries which have low energy storage capacity. They are so limited in range that most are supplied as petrol/electric hybrids – these are heavier, more costly and more complex than our current car fleet. And so hybrids need two energy storage tanks.

The green fantasy is that electric car batteries can be recharged by solar cells on your house roof. You will need a second set of batteries. Yes, after a just few days plugged into the solar panel, the cute green car may be ready for a trip to the local shops.

Electric cars will have no effect on global climate – they are another example of costly green tokenism. They are rich men's toys.

forbes@carbon-sense.com

The above gives me the opportunity to again plug nuclear power as the solution, well matched with electric cars - Ed.