Pike Research keeps on pouring out reports, including its latest one, titled "Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment." This report from Pike forecasts that by the end of 2017, more than 7.7 million charging stations will have been installed around the globe, including 1.5 million right here in the United States. And no, this
It's true that crystal balls that accurately forecast the future of plug-in vehicles don't exist, but for $2,800 you can buy a copy of a report that concludes with this bit of info: worldwide cumulative plug-in vehicle sales will reach 5.2 million units by 2017.
According to the latest Pike Pulse report, three automakers stand out among the competition in the light-duty fuel cell vehicle segment. Pike Research says the automotive trio of Daimler (maker of Mercedes-Benz vehicles), Honda and Toyota lead the pack at this formative stage of fuel cell vehi
According to a report from Pike Research, more than 5,200 hydrogen fueling stations will be operational worldwide by 2020, up from just 200 stations in 2010. The research firm forecasts that, by the end of 2020, annual investments in hydrogen stations will soar to $1.6 billion, with ten-year (2010 to 2020) investments hitting $8.4 billion globally.
The total number of neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) on roads throughout the world will increase slowly but steadily from 479,000 in 2011 to 695,000 by 2017, according to a study conducted by Pike Research. During that time period, annual NEV sales will shoot up from 37,000 vehicles to nearly 55,000, with North America accounting for a whopping 45 percent of annual sales. Pike notes that:
Worldwide sales of vehicles equipped with stop-start technology (aka micro hybrids) will soar in the coming decade, rising from three million units in 2011 to 37.3 million units annually by 2020, according to Pike Research. At that level, stop-start technology will be standard equipment in more than one-third of all light-duty vehicles sold.
According to the latest Pike Pulse report, two electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) companies stand out among the competition in strategy and execution: Coulomb Technologies and Ecotality, with one above the other.
According to a study conducted by Pike Research, the number of electric motorcycles and scooters on the roads across the globe will increase from an estimated 17 million in 2011 to 138 million by 2017. Battery-powered two-wheelers are already widely used in China and other urbanized areas of Asia, says Pike. But in other regions, government incentives and rising fuel costs will contribute to increased demand for electric motorcycles and scooters.
According to a report from Pike Research, cumulative sales of fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) will surpass the million-unit milestone by 2020, with total sales hitting 1.2 million by the end of that year. Pike indicates that, between 2010 to 2014, approximately 10,000 FCVs will hit the streets. Following that, the research firm claims that 57,000 FCVs will be sold in 2015, with sales soaring to 390,000 vehicles annually by 2020.
Forecasting the future of the plug-in vehicle segment is not an exact science, but countless firms, including Pike Research, strive to provide accurate predictions. Recently, Pike constructed a model for plug-in vehicles sales broken down by individual states and metropolitan statistical areas.
What will 2010 bring for plug-in vehicles? It's going to be one of the most exciting years for the technology in a long, long time but it won't be all wine and roses. Clean technology market intelligence firm Pike Research and HybridCars recently partnered up on a list of ten plug-in hybrid and electric vehicle predictions for the new year. They have released a 14-page white paper that people can buy, and have also blogged about a few of the predictions, including:
2011 Chevrolet Volt - click above for high-res image gallery
