ICAS ICAS logo

Quicklinks

  1. About Us

    Find out about who we are and what we do here at ICAS.

  2. Find a CA

    Search our directory of individual CAs and Member organisations by name, location and professional criteria.

  3. CA Magazine

    View the latest issues of the dedicated magazine for ICAS Chartered Accountants.

  4. Contact Us

    Get in touch with ICAS by phone, email or post, with dedicated contacts for Members, Students and firms.

Login
  • Annual renewal
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Find a CA
  1. About us
    1. Governance
  2. Members
    1. Become a member
    2. Newly qualified
    3. Manage my membership
    4. Benefits of membership
    5. Careers support
    6. Mentoring
    7. CA Wellbeing
    8. More for Members
    9. Area networks
    10. International communities
    11. Get involved
    12. Top Young CAs
    13. Career breaks
    14. ICAS podcast
    15. Newly admitted members 2022
    16. Newly admitted members 2023
  3. CA Students
    1. Student information
    2. Student resources
    3. Learning requirements
    4. Learning updates
    5. Learning blog
    6. Totum Pro | Student discount card
    7. CA Student wellbeing
  4. Become a CA
    1. How to become a CA
    2. Routes to becoming a CA
    3. CA Stories
    4. Find a training agreement
    5. Why become a CA
    6. Qualification information
    7. University exemptions
  5. Employers
    1. Become an Authorised Training Office
    2. Resources for Authorised Training Offices
    3. Professional entry
    4. Apprenticeships
  6. Find a CA
  7. ICAS events
    1. CA Summit
  8. CA magazine
  9. Insight
    1. Finance + Trust
    2. Finance + Technology
    3. Finance + EDI
    4. Finance + Mental Fitness
    5. Finance + Leadership
    6. Finance + Sustainability
  10. Professional resources
    1. Anti-money laundering
    2. Audit and assurance
    3. Brexit
    4. Business and governance
    5. Charities
    6. Coronavirus
    7. Corporate and financial reporting
    8. Cyber security
    9. Ethics
    10. Insolvency
    11. ICAS Research
    12. Pensions
    13. Practice
    14. Public sector
    15. Sustainability
    16. Tax
  11. CPD - professional development
    1. CPD courses and qualifications
    2. CPD news and updates
    3. CPD support and advice
  12. Regulation
    1. Complaints and sanctions
    2. Regulatory authorisations
    3. Guidance and help sheets
    4. Regulatory monitoring
  13. CA jobs
    1. CA jobs partner: Rutherford Cross
    2. Resources for your job search
    3. Advertise with CA jobs
    4. Hays | A Trusted ICAS CA Jobs Partner
    5. Azets | What's your ambition?
  14. Work at ICAS
    1. Business centres
    2. Meet our team
    3. Benefits
    4. Vacancies
    5. Imagine your career at ICAS
  15. Contact us
    1. Technical and regulation queries
    2. ICAS logo request

Electric vehicles and the sustainability balance sheet

  • LinkedIn (opens new window)
  • Twitter (opens new window)
Matt McGeehan CA By Matt McGeehan CA

27 July 2017

Main points

  • We are on the verge of an electric car revolution.
  • The benefits are obvious but the costs are less clear.
  • We need to consider both sides of the sustainability balance sheet.

The government’s decision to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2040 is the latest in a series of measures from industry and other governments aimed at tackling the damaging effects of increasing levels of nitrogen oxide.

Matt McGeehan CA weighs up the environmental pros and cons of investing in the technology for your next set of wheels or company car fleet.

An EV revolution

Conscientious car owners are increasingly choosing electric vehicles (EVs) to reduce their running costs whilst reducing their environmental footprint.

EVs currently represent a relatively small proportion of total vehicles on the road and are perhaps viewed as being relatively boring and underpowered.

However, with the advent of new models like the stunning Tesla 3, which is due to be unveiled at the end of July and the amazing BMW i8, which is due to be unveiled in 2018, EVs are now turning heads and demand is set to increase exponentially. We are indeed on the verge of an EV motoring revolution.

However, no technological change is without consequences and we need to examine the environmental impact of EV technology on the sustainability balance sheet.

BMW electric car

Image credit: Darren Brode / Shutterstock.com

The benefits

  • EVs add a great deal to the asset side of the sustainability balance sheet.
  • They reduce tailpipe emissions compared to conventional vehicles. Fully electric vehicles have no tailpipe emissions at all and even hybrid electric vehicles have no emissions when running in electrical mode.
  • EV batteries don’t use lead or acid and so avoid the harmful environmental impact of disposing of these toxic materials.
  • They also reduce noise pollution which is increasingly becoming an issue as motorways get wider and new housing developments get closer to them.

The drawbacks

  • The environmental impact of EVs depends on how the electricity that fuels them is produced. If the electricity is produced in, say, a coal-fired power station then this may have a considerable environmental cost per mile. So, when comparing the environmental impact of an EV to a petrol-powered vehicle, we need to consider the source of the electricity. Whilst we may save on tailpipe emissions we need to factor in emissions from the electricity producer.
  • EV batteries use large amounts of elements such as nickel, lithium and cobalt. In addition, EVs use comparatively large amounts of copper in their electric drive wiring. These metals are definitely less toxic than the lead and acid used in conventional batteries. However, the mining of these elements has a substantial environmental impact. For instance, nickel is extracted from sulphide ores and this can have a lasting impact on the surrounding area.
  • Tesla is investing heavily in its “Gigafactory” which will produce lithium batteries, not only for its cars but for other domestic and industrial applications as well. However, we need to ensure that such high investment in lithium technology does not stifle research into even more efficient forms of energy storage.
  • As EV is relatively new technology, we have not yet fully seen the environmental impact of disposing of EVs, and their batteries, at the end of their lives. However, there will be a disposal cost and it needs to be provided for in our sustainability balance sheet.

Nickel factory

Weighing it up

On balance, the growth of EVs would appear to be a good thing for improving the sustainability balance sheet.

However, as consumers, we need to bear a few things in mind when making our purchasing decisions.

We may be replacing the environmental impact of internal combustion and disposal of lead/acid batteries with another set of problems arising out of increased mining of nickel, copper, lithium and cobalt as well as unknown end-of-life costs.

We need to consider how our electricity is produced rather than assuming that a plug-in EV is a completely “clean” technology.

When weighing up the statistics such as acceleration, insurance costs and range we should also understand the full global impact of EV technology on the sustainability balance sheet.

Matt McGeehan CA is a Technical Adviser at ICAS.

Back to the future: why business should upcycle old technologies

By Matt McGeehan CA

3 July 2017

This isn't just any sustainability plan, this is an M&S plan

By Matt McGeehan CA

18 May 2017

ICAS logo

Footer links

  • Contact us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Privacy notice
  • CA magazine

Connect with ICAS

  • Facebook (opens new window) Facebook Icon
  • Twitter (opens new window) Twitter Icon
  • LinkedIn (opens new window) LinkedIn Icon
  • Instagram (opens new window) Instagram Icon

ICAS is a member of the following bodies

  • Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (opens new window) Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies logo
  • Chartered Accountants Worldwide (opens new window) Chartered Accountants Worldwide logo
  • Global Accounting Alliance (opens new window) Global Accounting Alliance
  • International Federation of Accountants (opens new window) IFAC
  • Access Accountancy (opens new window) Access Acountancy

Charities

  • ICAS Foundation (opens new window) ICAS Foundation
  • SCABA (opens new window) scaba

Accreditations

  • ISO 9001 - RGB (opens new window)
© ICAS 2022

The mark and designation “CA” is a registered trade mark of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS), and is available for use in the UK and EU only to members of ICAS. If you are not a member of ICAS, you should not use the “CA” mark and designation in the UK or EU in relation to accountancy, tax or insolvency services. The mark and designation “Chartered Accountant” is a registered trade mark of ICAS, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales and Chartered Accountants Ireland. If you are not a member of one of these organisations, you should not use the “Chartered Accountant” mark and designation in the UK or EU in relation to these services. Further restrictions on the use of these marks also apply where you are a member.

ICAS logo

Our cookie policy

ICAS.com uses cookies which are essential for our website to work. We would also like to use analytical cookies to help us improve our website and your user experience. Any data collected is anonymised. Please have a look at the further information in our cookie policy and confirm if you are happy for us to use analytical cookies: