More and more people are switching to electric cars. In addition to convenience and a certain fashion trend, for some drivers, an important factor in replacing their car is environmental friendliness, as reducing emissions should curb global warming. However, the situation is quite ironic—it is global warming that is harming electric cars by "killing" their batteries. Can the industry cope with this challenge?
Euronews discusses this in its article.
The boom in electric cars in the EU
The European Union has slightly eased restrictions on car emissions, but this does not prevent people from switching to more environmentally friendly transport.
In December 2025, experts from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association recorded a historic turning point. For the first time, sales of electric cars exceeded sales of gasoline-powered cars. Registrations of new gasoline cars fell by 18.7%.
However, there is one thing that deters car owners from buying electric vehicles: their poor ability to withstand extreme temperatures. After all, it is well known that heat accelerates battery degradation.
Thermal impact at the chemical level
Last year was one of the three hottest years in recorded history. The average global temperature exceeded the pre-industrial level by 1.5°C.
At the same time, the results of a study conducted by What Car? showed the extremely negative impact of heat on electric cars. If the ambient temperature remains between 32-44℃, the car's range can be reduced by 44%. This is due to the effect on chemical reactions inside the battery.
"Just as low temperatures slow everything down, higher temperatures can create faster reactions, which can lead to undesirable consequences that accelerate battery discharge," said Polestar, a company that manufactures electric cars.
Technology vs. Heat
Researchers from the University of Michigan offered a more optimistic perspective. They analyzed the performance of batteries from different generations and found that newer models lose much less lifespan from heat exposure.
The scientists modeled a scenario in which the world warms by 2℃ above pre-industrial levels. They found that batteries manufactured between 2010 and 2018 lose up to 30% of their lifespan, while those produced between 2019 and 2023 lose only 3% to, at most, 10%.
However, the authors emphasize that this applies only to the European Union and the United States. In other regions, vehicle fleets may use different battery technologies, so the study’s results may prove overly optimistic for them.
EkoPolitic reported that the U.S. is actively expanding its network of ultra-fast charging stations for electric vehicles.
Meanwhile, in Ukraine, due to the reintroduction of VAT on customs clearance of vehicles, electric car imports fell fourteenfold.
