OPINION… The New Energy Revolution: How Electric Vehicles will change alot of things about us

With the COP28 ended barely few days ago the specters are high. At the core of it is the clean revolution and transitioning.
The call for a clean energy transition is gaining momentum, not just in America and Europe, even in Asia, and Africa, giving rise to newer industries and reform of older ones.

For example, the constructions of lithium factories evolving across the world. If the rise of the machines in the 18th century were called the ‘Industrial Revolution’, we don’t yet know what we may call this, or if we already did, perhaps the fifth revolution or the sixth. Whichever, would this change from our fossil driven machines to a clean energy one just be about a change in the souls of what our vehicles would begin to look like, or will there be another change we may hope to see? In few years to come the Inner Combustion Vehicles (ICVs), would be replaced. The process has already began: No less than 60 per cent car manufacturers have switched already, more are in the process, and in the same way newer ones are developing.

But not many have taken time to understand what this change may also be about. The coming of the Electric Vehicles (EVs) will change our society, and us, and in so many ways. Here I outline 12 significant changes and places we will witness this changes, and how they may come and what they will look like.

1. Old Rhetorics will be replaced.
This means a shift in rhetoric. Several rhetorics that were conversant with the fossil drive vehicles will give way. To say the right words, ‘phase out’. Words like ‘Fueling’ will give way to ‘Charging’, and ‘Refill’ would give way to ‘Recharge’. Even though they can both go to mean the same thing as we can both use refilling as refilling our batteries, but the conventional culture synonymous with this words were different until now. For example, until now we know recharging to relate with our gadgets: phones, laptops, etc.
We will begin to hear words like “I am at the ‘recharge station” and no longer ‘filling or gas station’. We will also begin to hear drivers say please some minutes to ‘fill my battery’ and no longer ‘fill my tank’. In all, ‘Petrol’ and ‘Petrol Tank’ would give way to newer words as ‘Charge’ and ‘Battery Tank’.

2. Automobile Dynamics.
This is one of the advanced place we will notice this change. A all new change in mechanical and operational settings in a number of massive ways. A great shift from fossil burner engine to clean Runners. Lots of features like The Carburetor, Fuel hoses and pipes would be converted to massive huge wires now.

3. Newer Kind of Problems.
The new EV’s will not just be about a cool cruise, there will also be something to worry about. In the past with the fossil fuel vehicles we can take a gallon and go get fuel whenever we are out of fuel in an unexpected situation or place. With the EVs if you are out of battery in a no charge battery zone it is almost impossible to find a way out.

4. Jobs and Repairs.
No less than 50-60% engineers and jobmen will loose their skill with the old engine method or take the painful time to learn this new one. Even still, it will not be an open secret for now. Manufacturers who have now developed this EVs will keep it close for a long time, denying assess to this knowledge for those who operate mechanical services/repairs outside the factories.

Again, the EVs is new, market aren’t globally open yet. As such many car manufacturers may undergo what I call the ‘Frozen period’ and leading to a number of layoffs. For example the 1,350 Stellantis plant layoff. One reason for this will be what I’ve termed the ‘imbetween period’. Now every manufacturer is faced with the inbetween period. What is the inbetween period? It is the period of decision that may characterize production: “Do we build based on policy or based on market – which is sales? i.e If a company rolls out more EVs, how certain are the acceptance and sales? Or should it keep filing out its inner combustion models which is still selling but defying the climate agenda? This questions are simply what I’d term ‘the inbetween’. It is moments manufacturers are interfaced between market demand, and, the climate revolution demand.

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5. From Flexibility to Rigidity.
Another critical area this change will reflect will be in its rigid method in helping us operate around life away from what we use to know. The ICVs were flexible, flexible in the sense that the source power were transferable or can be transferable. As I mentioned before, fuel/petrol can be exchanged, moved from one place to another, and as easily. But the batteries are a massive dead, they perhaps make up to 30% of the entire body weight of their Vehicles.
One benefit we would miss with the fossil vehicles is the fact that its source of energy which is fuel/petrol can be split into any quantity. No matter how big a bus or a truck we can carry the energy source that gets it up as little as in a gallon and easy. but this is not so with the EVs. The fact that the source of the inner combustion engine energy, which is petrol, is carryable and can be reduced to any quantity makes it flexible.

6. There may be Power Bank Method soon.
One development the EVs may create in the coming years will be the power bank technology. In coming years EVs manufacturers may begin to consider a power bank energy storage system to compliment for emergency situations. Like our older gadgets: Phones (power bank), Computers (UPS), which run along this kind of energy method. To adopt this, battery fittings and designs may be built in such ways that support convertibility, that is, easy to remove and easy to plug in.

7. Things will get dull for sometime.
This is quite another major area we will truely experience the change. We cannot envisage the new comer to act as interesting. The over 100 years of excitement with our IC Models isn’t just going to be a throw away. Even if They (The EVs) will come with newer excitements, there will also be some reservations. For anything, they’ld create surprises, people will need time to adjust.

Here we mean over 100 years of not just engines but an entire operation being replaced. Sure this will not act usual. Receiving new things always has its feeling: time to learn them, how to adjust to them, how to find repairers.

8. Feelings.
Every new thing takes time to adjust, we have said. And the adjusting process may often get complicated, confusing, and doubtful. Even still, the feeling of loosing something can be another grieve. The ICVs are not just art pieces or portraits, they’ve been with us for a very long time and we’ve come to trust them. For people like us, as one writer wrote, “we will miss the roars” we use to know with the IC engines.

9. To Trust or to Doubt.
The Inner Combustion engines have been with us for a very long time. They have been trusted companions, doing tough jobs, raising rocks, moving earths, and we trust them. We trust their ability, we trust their performance. But we can’t yet say so of the new comers. This is one critical aspect we will begin to wage war around for a long time. The EVs may not do so much. Talk about massive escavators – real rock lifters, we have not yet found battery folks that run this kind of tough jobs yet.

10. Economic Drop.
In over the past 6 decades oil and gas have accounted for one of the top revenue source in the world. The Lithium may not meet this, not even in the next 50 years. This will mean something.

11. Uncertainty.
Above all the effects of our transitioning the most will come here. With the shift from fossil driven engines there will be about a huge measure of uncertainty for many nations. How many nations of the world are prepared, especially for those whose revenue source have been with the fossil trades? Beside economy, there are worries for Lithium mining with potentials for affecting local water source and large amount of water to mine.

12. International Restructuring.
The fossil driven economy gave rise to several local, regional, continental, and global associations and organizations. For example, the ‘Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC), founded in 1960, with mandate to regulate oil price in the international market. Since then it has served for its members and the global oil market. As the EVs technology begin to evolve, there may begin to emerge this kind of features (associations and organizations), perhaps ‘Organization of Lithium Producing Countries’ or the ‘Organization of Lithium Exporting Countries’ coming to light to drive and coordinate the entire industry both at the local and the International levels.

Jerry O. Jonah is a Political affairs analyst, Writer and Life Coach

AUTHOR: Jerry O. Jonah

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Articles published in our Graffiti section are strictly the opinion of the writers and do not represent the views of Ripples Nigeria or its editorial stand.

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