How Viable is Electric Car in Bhutan?

Note: Before I write about this given topic, I would like to say that it is not my intention to make a contrasting opinion to any of the person or figures - political, commercial or economical, as a matter of fact. It is purely a personal interest for the topic and the information provided are based on my own personal research (articles, books, papers, etc.). Also, if you find incorrect information or any kind of mistakes please leave your suggestions under the comments section below.

With increasing number of cities and countries adopting new Electric Vehicles (EVs) and hybrids, it is not uncommon for Bhutan to follow the same path. The conventional gasoline vehicles emit tonnes of pollution into the atmosphere, increasing global warming, and causing damage to the environment far more than we can imagine. So it makes perfect sense to adopt electric vehicles in our country as it is clean and efficient. EVs have minimum impact to both people and environment. However, electric vehicles have some major technological drawbacks: 

1. Charging points

It is not an easy task to install electric car charging stations in many parts of the rural areas in Bhutan. Many of the developed countries still suffer from major lack of enough charging stations, which makes difficult for consumers to adopt EVs. Bhutan will need huge capital and resources, if it plans to make EVs viable. 

2. Time spent in charging

This is another big hurdle for both consumers and manufacturers as EVs take longer time to charge their batteries than its counterpart. Most EVs on the market will need to be plugged in overnight to fully charge. 

Let's take a few real-world examples:

The Nissan LEAF uses lithium-ion batteries, just like your laptop and your cell phone, but it uses a lot more of them. It can charge overnight (8 hours) at a 220/240-volt Nissan charging dock that's installed in your garage. It can also charge at a 110/120-volt outlet, the kind you plug your laptop and cell phone into, but it'll take far, far longer.

The sexy Tesla Roadster uses lithium-ion batteries, too, but the 240-volt Tesla High Power Wall Connector, as they call it, can charge that baby in a mere 3.5 hours. But before you open your wallet, you should know that this is also one of the most expensive EVs on the road.

A little neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV), like the cars from  GEM  (Global Electric Motorcars), uses lead-acid batteries . This technology is older, proven to be reliable and charges in about 6 to 8 hours at a standard 110-volt outlet. So what's the tradeoff? A maximum speed of just 25 miles per hour (40.2 kilometers per hour).  

Also, consumers fear that their vehicles might get stranded if they run out of battery. 

3. Environmental impact

One recent study by scientists in EV-friendly Norway has found that in some circumstances electric cars can have a greater impact on global warming than conventional cars. One of the findings is that the energy intensive manufacturing of EVs means that some cars make almost double the impact on global warming as conventional cars. This is mostly because of the raw materials and energy needed to build the lithium-ion batteries.

If Bhutan wants to adopt EVs, it should consider all the factors stated above and beyond. I cannot really say for certain when Bhutanese will be ready to adopt EVs on large scale, but I sincerely hope it changes. Personally, I think it is a wonderful initiative taken by the current government and laying foundation for green vehicles may be a small step but in long run it may turn out to be fruitful.  

Like my father would say: "It is never too early or too late to start anything."