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Re:Tesla Model 3 Ramp Up Aims to Compete with BMW 3 and Merc... by davedx on Tuesday March 28, 2017 @12:02PM (#13977743)
> Not to mention the fact that electricity gets surprisingly expensive at peak rates.

Extremely relevant point. EV penetration will cause huge surges in demand; a 100 KwH Tesla is ~10 days of household electricity usage here in the Netherlands. That's why demand response and load shifting will be critical.

> no energy source is really ever "free".

The sun is pretty close to free on the scale we use energy at. :)

Re:Tesla Model 3 Ramp Up Aims to Compete with BMW 3 and Merc... by LoSboccacc on Tuesday March 28, 2017 @12:15PM (#13977881)
> The sun is pretty close to free

nope. building solar panels pollute. disposing them more so. the setup with mirror and a standard turbine has less costs tied to manufacturing, but creates a huge no fly zone for birds.. and everything else really, so you can't plop a thousand of them all over the place. having them in deserts works, but you still need to transport the energy, which has a cost and again an environmental impact.

now, all in all the impact from solar is quite less than burning coal or oil, but there are other solution that are at least competitive (methane, nuclear) - but there are very few studies compare the total cost and pollution including externalities, because everyone likes to profit on the state incentives