Transport & Environment (T&E) does not like plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs). It accused them more than once of greenwashing personal transportation and emitting more than automakers claim they do. That's controversial, considering car companies follow test protocols that give them the disclosed results. Anyway, it seems that T&E is indirectly and unwillingly defending PHEVs with a study that urges carmakers to make smaller battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
According to T&E, if BEVs sold in Europe were not as big as they currently are, the demand for raw materials to make batteries could drop by up to 49%. That said, it believes "governments and the EU must take action to reduce battery and car sizes, which is the single most effective measure to reduce metals demand." Ironically, this is what Gill Pratt has been saying for quite some time without urging politicians to impose anything: his solution is to advocate for smaller battery packs in vehicles – without necessarily reducing the cars themselves.
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