The Case for an Electric Car

Ten. That's the number of hours of load-shedding The Nation says that Karachiites were protesting against today (12th October).
Five. That's the amount, in thousands, of Megawatts that Pakistan is facing a shortfall of.
Thirty-two. That's the amount in billion, of dollars, some report by some organiztion claims Pakistan needs to put in the energy sector to be able to meet demands uptil 2020.


Ok, so I am not good at this sort of dramatization, but you get the picture. Right?


In short, Pakistan is facing a gargantuan shortfall of electricity. And you must be wondering, what's wrong with this guy...carrying out a bloody propaganda in favor of an electric car, while giving stats against it.

That's how you define a nutter. But we aren't talking about me.

We are talking about the fact that while Pakistan does meet about 75% of its electricity requirements (15,000 MW production against 20,000 MW demand), and about 40% from renewable sources (8,000 MW from hydel), Pakistan can meet only about 15-20 % of its petroleum requirements. The rest is made up from a hefty import bill. About $12 Billion on petroleum and petroleum products.

The figures are staggering. And yes, I have been reading a newspaper article regarding our country's energy deficit.

But my point is that petroleum = bad. Electricity from renewable sources is good. And as the oil crisis (which may not be a crisis at this time, but we all know its running out) takes shape, the future is all electric. Renewable Electric.

We are looking at a time when solar cells and windmills become ubiquitous. They have to become ubiquitous; there is no other way (lets just rule out sources that are toxic, harmful to the environment, etc, etc). And when they do, the electric car can become the chief mode of human locomotion.

So, electric car is good. Buy it.

No...don't buy it. Wait for us to make it, optimise it, test it and bring it to market. That can take...some years...or some decades...or maybe some centuries. Hang on.