According to a study by consultancy Kearney, commissioned by General Motors, Brazil is expected to have a fleet of 5.5 million electric cars by 2035.

The 100% electric car segment is the fastest growing in the world. They accounted for more than 7% of car and light commercial vehicle sales in 2021.

The president of ABVE – Associação Brasileira do Veículo Elétrico, Adalberto Maluf–  announced that Brazil surpassed, in the last week of July, the historic mark of 100,000 electrified vehicles in circulation in the country. As of July 26, sales of electrified vehicles in 2022 have already totaled 23,033 light vehicles, 31% more than the 17,524 in the first seven months of 2021.

He celebrated the results, but reiterated that they remain below the potential of the Brazilian low-emission vehicle market: “These 100,000 are a great highlight and show that Brazil is on the right track, but there is still a lot to be done for electrification to advance. We need a national electromobility policy, that is aligned and coordinated between the federal government and state and municipal governments to encourage the transition from the combustion vehicle to the electric vehicle” – said Adalberto Maluf.

SOURCE: ABVE/Renavam/Anfavea/Abeifa

Electrified Vehicles = Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) + Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) + 100% Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV).

Cars + Light Commercial Vehicles (does not include buses, trucks, and very light electric vehicles).

Enel Brasil S.A (a company of Grupo Enel, one of the largest energy companies in the world) hired Deloitte to organize a large study entitled “Paths to the Energy Transition in Brazil” ( Climate Scorecard actively participated in the debate tables). In the Transport sector, some examples of recommendations were listed to help reach a decarbonization scenario with the electrification of mobility as the main means of transport. These include:

1. Providing incentives that restrict the use of conventional vehicles (26% of total transport electrification in the 2050 net zero scenarios);
2. Fluidity and sustainability of urban mobility – vehicle monitoring, smart traffic lights, management of the proper use of public parking spaces;
3. Structural improvements in the municipalities – intensification and improvements in cycle paths, cycle lanes, integrating with public transport;
4. Introduction of green hydrogen for freight trucks (in 2050, the total demand for green hydrogen is 0.14 million tons);

Regarding the perspective of electric cars in the transport sector, factors that allow the electric vehicle to gain competitiveness were listed:

1. A significant reduction in the cost of batteries is expected, reaching USD/kWh 62 in 2030;
2. A fall in the Leveled Cost of Energy due to the introduction of unconventional renewable energies in the Brazilian energy matrix;
3. Granting of benefits/privileges of circulation for electric vehicles that include the reduction of parking costs;
4. Implementation of policies aimed at reducing the cost of acquiring electric vehicles and their components by reducing tax rates.

Electric mobility is currently more competitive in public transport and has been generating significant savings in private transport. From the year 2025 onwards, electric cars will become a cheaper option than traditional fossil fuel cars.

Good examples abound, Rodrigo Figueiredo, VP of Sustainability at AMBEV – in a roundtable promoted by Enel/Deloitte on 09/26/22- said that the company has 250 electric trucks in Brazil, the largest fleet in Latin America. The company intends to achieve zero scopes 1 and 2 emissions by 2030.

It is also worth remembering that Brazil currently has one of the largest Flex-Fuel fleets in the world, with 34,386,564 vehicles licensed since 2003. Ethanol is important for the decarbonization of large urban centers, as it emits 90% less gas carbon dioxide (CO₂) than gasoline and helps big cities reduce pollution, improving air quality after more intensive use of ethanol.

At a time when the cost of acquiring electric vehicles is still prohibitive for most citizens, a policy of incentives for fueling ethanol would be very welcome, contributing decisively to the environment.

This Post was submitted by Climate Scorecard Brazil Country Manager Carlos Alexandre de Oliveira