Last June, the Greek government ratified a number of consumer incentives meant to push Greek consumers in the direction of electric cars. The bill itself was reasonably generous: it offered subsidies as high as 5500€for personal vehicles, as well as several added benefits for car chargers and electric scooters. Conceivably, the Mitsotakis administration passed this bill in an effort to propel Greece into the era of eco-mobility and give its reputation a much-needed boost on the sustainability front. But how well do electric cars sell in Greece – and, more importantly, can they be truly sustainable in the context of its current energy landscape?

Let’s look at how popular electric vehicles (EVs) are at the moment. According to automotive analysis company JATO Dynamics, electric car sales went up by 91% between 2019 and 2020, while hybrid car sales shot up by a staggering 173%. While this bodes well for the prospects of eco-friendly vehicles, it’s wise to remember that the future of energy is at best nebulous. According to a report by Exxon Mobile, projections made on the next 50 years indicate a steady, but limited increase in the use of renewables, while fossil fuels continue to dominate the energy scene. On the other hand, the International Energy Agency forecasts a 7% growth for renewables used for generating electricity in 2020, which is especially interesting given total energy demand fell by 2.2% over the year. The energy landscape is a function of politics and scientific achievement, so it’s hard to tell whether these two predictions are in agreement or contrast with each other. What’s important is how either statistic translates in terms of electric vehicle popularity and sustainability.

But how sustainable are EVs in the first place? Their key difference between them and run-of-the-mill thermal cars is that the latter produce kinetic energy through a combustion reaction in their engine. This reaction produces greenhouse gases – mostly CO2 – which is why thermal cars and combustion engine vehicles in general are listed among the causes of climate change. Electric vehicles operate on a vastly different principle: they release that energy electrochemically, skipping the combustion step altogether. As a result, they’re not only greenhouse gas-free, but markedly more efficient than thermal cars.

Although this might seem like reason enough to celebrate, it’s important to look at the bigger picture. To assess a product’s sustainability, we need to examine its life cycle from beginning to end: what processes go into making it or operating it, and how viable are they from an environmental standpoint? When that product is no longer functional or relevant, what impact does discarding or scrapping it have on the environment, and can it be recycled or upcycled?

In the case of electric vehicles, this discussion boils down to where the electricity they consume comes from. Calling EVs holistically sustainable would imply that they use up energy produced from renewable sources. Unfortunately, by virtue of statistics alone, that cannot always be the case:

This chart shows the amount of electricity produced by burning fossil fuels over the past decade. We can see here that the dependence of electricity production on fossil fuels worldwide has remained relatively stable at roughly 60% (shown in red). On the other hand, Greece (shown in blue) has limited fossil fuel use by 20%, and Iceland (shown in black) has completely replaced fossil fuels with hydro.

In layman’s terms, this means that charging your electric vehicle would be much more sustainable overall in Iceland than it would be in Greece, where the main electricity provider still mostly burns coal. That being said, the Mediterranean country has made strides in RES use, even breaking the European record in wind power production back in September. Sadly, harnessing renewables comes with its own dedicated can of worms: in Greece, many island communities have been protesting the creation of wind farms, claiming that installing wind turbines will disturb the vulnerable, unique ecosystems present in the Greek archipelagoes. This movement, bizarrely vocal and underrepresented at the same time, has been calling for the use of other renewables, such as geothermal energy, in order to make the energy production process less intrusive.

So, should you buy an electric car? The answer largely depends on where you live. At the same time, energy policies aren’t static: they are subject to change over time and between administrations. Unfortunately, driving ethically is every bit as complicated as any other sustainable consumer choice. It requires thorough research on your country’s environmental state of affairs, energy projections, and incentives, on top of hunting for a good bargain. The good news is that as green vehicles become more ubiquitous, companies will take steps to simplify this process for the environmentally conscious consumer.