According to comprehensive research from the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), electric vehicles produce 73% fewer greenhouse gases than petrol or diesel cars over their entire lifetime. The gap keeps widening as Europe’s electricity grid gets cleaner.
The study tracked emissions from manufacturing through 20 years of driving for medium-sized cars. It found EVs in Europe now emit nearly four times fewer greenhouse gases than traditional combustion engine vehicles.
EVs are getting cleaner faster than expected.
The research shows a 24% improvement in EV emissions compared to 2021 estimates. This improvement comes largely from Europe’s rapid shift to renewable energy – wind and solar power now generate much more of the continent’s electricity.
Renewable sources will produce 56% of Europe’s electricity by the end of this year. The EU Joint Research Centre projects that figure will reach 86% by 2045.
“Battery electric cars in Europe are getting cleaner faster than we expected and outperform all other technologies, including hybrids and plug-in hybrids,” said Dr. Marta Negri, researcher at the ICCT and co-author of the report. “This progress is largely due to the fast deployment of renewable electricity across the continent and the greater energy efficiency of battery electric cars.”
The Numbers Break Down Simply
The ICCT calculated total emissions from vehicle production, maintenance, fuel production and fuel consumption. A petrol car emits 235g/km of greenhouse gases over its lifetime. An EV produces just 63g/km based on Europe’s predicted electricity mix through 2044.
EVs do create more emissions during manufacturing – primarily from battery production. But that extra impact gets offset after driving about 17,000km or 10,500 miles.
Other technologies show smaller improvements.
Plug-in hybrid cars cut lifetime emissions by 30% compared to gasoline vehicles. The study found PHEVs are driven on electricity less than previously assumed. Regular hybrids offer just a 20% reduction.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles bring bigger reductions but depend heavily on how the hydrogen is made. FCEVs running on “green” hydrogen – made using renewable electricity – can cut emissions by 79% compared to petrol cars.
That’s not realistic today since green hydrogen isn’t produced or distributed at scale in Europe.
Using hydrogen made from natural gas, the reduction drops to just 26%. Most hydrogen currently comes from natural gas rather than renewable sources.
“We hope this study brings clarity to the public conversation, so that policymakers and industry leaders can make informed decisions,” said Dr. Georg Bieker, ICCT senior researcher. “We’ve recently seen auto industry leaders misrepresenting the emissions math on hybrids. But life-cycle analysis is not a choose-your-own-adventure exercise. Our study accounts for the most representative use cases and is grounded in real-world data. Consumers deserve accurate, science-backed information.”
The research addresses ongoing debates about EV environmental impact. Critics often focus on manufacturing emissions or electricity grid pollution without considering the full picture over a vehicle’s lifetime.
As Europe continues expanding renewable energy capacity, the environmental advantage of EVs will keep growing. Cars sold today will become even cleaner as they’re powered by an increasingly renewable grid over their 20-year lifespan.
