Will the electric vehicle demand match the supply?

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- With the General Motors electric vehicle (EV) battery plant moving forward in New Carlisle, it brings the question of if the EV industry will continue to grow as the production increases.

The program director, Ryan Lisek, for Drive Clean Indiana, 501(c)(3) nonprofit department of energy clean cities and communities' coalition, explained he believes the industry will take off by 2030.

“I don’t think that the supply is there yet because the demands not there just yet, but I think we’re going to be seeing a tipping point, if you will, probably around 2030. Especially for Indiana, where we’re going to be seeing a 10% kind of new electric vehicle sales compared to new internal combustion engine sales and registrations, but that’s going to take time. People need to feel comfortable, and you know, buying a vehicle is probably one of the top biggest decisions in people's lives,” said Lisek.

He said that in 2023, the battery electric vehicle sales in Indiana was 26,101 vehicles for 2023. That was a 48% increase from 2022, and while the national EV sales have seen about a 9 percent increase in market shares year-to-year compared to internal combustion engine sales, it’s been a slower increase than most were expecting.

He says one big reason for the slow growth of the industry is the cost of EVs. However, Lisek believes as automakers are still early in the transition to electric, the demand will eventually catch up.

If there are more unanswered questions about electric vehicles, Drive Clean Indiana will be hosting an electric vehicle display at South Bend’s First Friday event at The Gridiron in downtown South Bend on Sep. 6 from 5:00 - 7:30 p.m.