Component Cost May Keep EV and Hybrid Prices High

Talk with any executive involved with hybrid- or pure-electric vehicles, and the conversation inevitably comes back to cost. The hope is that economies of scale will save the day, bringing down component costs and making green vehicles affordable and profitable for all. Except that prices might not fall.

Several recent studies indicate that the cost of batteries may not decline as much as hoped over the next decade. What's more, some researchers think the cost of rare-earth elements--essential to key components in an electric drivetrain--actually may increase.




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