KAPSARC study shows drop in carbon emissions with EV deployment

A new study by King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) shows that fleet emissions can fall by approximately 0.5 to 0.9 percent for each 1 percent of the fleet replaced by electric vehicles (EVs).

A new study by King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) shows that fleet emissions can fall by approximately 0.5 to 0.9 percent for each 1 percent of the fleet replaced by electric vehicles (EVs).
The study entitled, “Electric Vehicle Deployment and Carbon Emissions in Saudi Arabia: A Power System Perspective,” points out that renewables deployment in the western and southern regions of the Kingdom would result in the marginal generator for EV charging becoming carbon-free.
The study built a power system model for Saudi Arabia, which quantifies the carbon emission implications of deploying EVs within the Kingdom. The model represented the four operating regions in the Kingdom and simulated 18 scenarios. These scenarios stemmed from varying the number of EVs deployed, the efficiency of internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), the effectiveness of EVs, and the time of charging. The study revealed that if 100,000 EVs were deployed (nearly 0.67 percent of Saudi Arabia’s passenger vehicle fleet) in place of the same number of ICEVs, the result would be a net carbon emissions reduction of 0.36 percent, a ratio of approximately 1 to 0.5.
The study also found that deploying EVs in the Kingdom would, on average, result in a net decrease in carbon emissions. For example, if 100,000 ICEVs (0.667 percent of the 15 million cars on the road) were replaced with 100,000 EVs, carbon emissions would decrease, on average, by around 0.35 percent.
KAPSARC’s study confirmed that each 1 percent of ICEVs replaced with EVs would reduce emissions by 0.5 percent. By extension, if the entire passenger car fleet changes to EVs, the fleet emissions would theoretically be halved on average, a decrease of 35 million tons.
The study also points out that the net emissions would increase if the most efficient ICEVs were replaced with the least efficient EVs in the worst-case scenario. The time of charging EV batteries does not have a material effect on EV emissions because the marginal generator, for the most part, remains the same in all regions.