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Chinese technology companies are paving the way for a world that will be powered by electric motors rather than gas-guzzling engines. It is a decisively 21st-century approach not just to solve its own energy problems, but also to sell batteries and other electric products to everyone else. Canada is its newest buyer of EVs; in a rebuke of Mr. Trump, its prime minister, Mark Carney, lowered tariffs on the cars as part of a new trade deal.
Though Americans have been slow to embrace electric vehicles, Chinese households have learned to love them. In 2025, 54 percent of new cars sold in China were either battery-powered or plug-in hybrids. That is a big reason that the country’s oil consumption is on track to peak in 2027, according to forecasts from the International Energy Agency. And Chinese E.V makers are setting records — whether it’s BYD’s sales (besting Tesla by battery-powered vehicles sold for the first time last year) or Xiaomi’s speed (its cars are setting records at major racetracks like Nürburgring in Germany).
Not that Trump is right but, how will we charge said batteries…?
In my case wind turbines. My local utility produces more wind power in a year than customers use.
Funny thing. Cloudy and rainy days tend to be windier than sunny days. So, with a bit of battery reserve or net metering, it all balances out.
Wind turbines can’t meet the energy demand of the infrastructure unfortunately. Nuclear is the most feasible option however, with the exception of France, no country has really committed to an energy source that can adequately support charging all these batteries albeit oil, natural gas, renewable energy etc. Oil and natural gas still continue to be the cheapest
I charge my BYD Han and my wife’s Tang with Solar. No issues there.
That is excellent and cost effective, however what then when there’s no sun out or it’s cloudy? Will you not travel?
This is one of the concerns I have watched with interest ……
Your concern may be technically and historically valid but is rapidly disappearing
You’re not going to believe this, but solar panels will still work even when the light is reflected or partially blocked by clouds. Rain actually helps to keep your panels operating efficiently by washing away any dust or dirt. If you live in an area with a strong net metering policy, excess energy generated by your panels during sunny hours will offset energy that you use at night and other times when your system isn’t operating at full capacity.
That’s crazy. I never would’ve guessed. Did you also know solar panels have a theoretical limit of 33%, which is diminished even more when sunlight is further blocked? Wow! That means they’re horribly inefficient and even more so when less light comes in! Who knew! So really we’re talking about pennies on the dollar at the end of the day when something like supplying a grid at a larger level would mean nuclear.
Did you know fractions are predicated on a base value?
That’s definitely an aphorism.
That’s what the batteries are for?
Source : I drive an EV on cloudy days.
There’s this really neat thing called nuclear reactors that produce an enormous amount of energy. It’s only been around for ~70 years but they look promising.
But they can’t work at night!
Right. And how many countries currently use or are planning to use this In a large scale capacity besides France? Oh yea.
No need to be a dickhead.
Works great in Finland.
Works pretty damn well for France. Maybe we should follow their lead.
I wholeheartedly agree with that. Doesn’t seem like anyone is though unfortunately.
There was even a car that charged itself with solar, they only ran out of money because there was little interest for an unknown new brand
The cars with solar panels on them are a gimmick. There isn’t enough surface area on a normal car to meaningfully charge the battery.
I think you would be surprised. The problem really comes from the car not being a good shape to put solar panels on. I did the math a while back, and I only needed 200w of panels to cover my weekly driving.
There was never a car that charged itself with solar because it’s practically impossible unless you put the car on a turntable at the equator in July.