Tesla, Uber lead US lobbying group for electric vehicle industry

Major US utilities led by Tesla and Uber are launching a new group dubbed Zero-Emission Transportation Association to lobby for national policies to boost consumer electric vehicle incentives and encourage the retirement of gasoline-powered vehicles.

The new group also advocates for tougher emissions and performance standards that will enable full electrification by 2030.

The group is calling for “strong federal charging infrastructure investments” with a goal to reach 100 percent electric vehicle sales by 2030 in line with President-elect Joe Biden’s measures.

Biden promises new tax incentives for EVs, the installation of 550,000 charging stations, and more federal government investment in clean energy research to create over a million good jobs in the US.

According to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, the group will support Uber’s efforts to move 100 percent of rides to EVs in the US, Canada, and Europe by 2030 and go zero-emissions by 2040.

Automakers in the US sold 326,000 EVs in 2019, accounting for about 2 percent of total US auto sales, with Tesla selling nearly 60 percent of the total.

Other members of the group are ConEdison, Duke Energy, PG&E, EV charging companies Chargepoint and EVgo, fledging automakers like Lordstown Motors, Rivian, and Lucid Motors, and Albemarle Corp, the world's largest producer of lithium for EV batteries.