Intergovernmental research
Global EV Outlook 2026: Manufacturing and trade
Production, trade and ownership are different measures. Electric cars include battery electric and plug-in hybrid cars in this chapter.
The source library
An argument is only
as good as its evidence.
Primary records, clearly identified source types and the limits of what each source establishes.
Research reviewed 29 September 2026. This edition draws on public investigations, intergovernmental analysis, official trade decisions, company records and identified industry research. It is an editorial synthesis, not original experimental research.
Estimates remain estimates. A study’s publication date may differ from its data period. Our selected incident records cannot establish comparative fire rates. Policy proposals are labelled as our position.
Intergovernmental research
Global EV Outlook 2026: Electric vehicle batteries
Distinguishes manufacturing capacity, actual output and battery deployment; covers chemistry and supplier economics.
Company statement
Agreement on the future of Volkswagen’s German operations
An announced workforce and production-capacity plan through 2030, not a count of jobs already lost.
Company statement
Volkswagen Group deliveries remain stable in 2025
Group-wide deliveries; battery electric vehicles are a subset of total vehicle deliveries.
Company report
Annual report 2025
Records the September 2025 announcement of around 13,000 additional planned job reductions, particularly at German Mobility locations. Plans are not completed job-loss counts.
Public authority
EU imposes duties on unfairly subsidised electric vehicles from China
The Commission’s finding concerned subsidisation and a threat of injury. This is a record of the 2024 measure, not a live tariff calculator.
Public authority
Guidance on price undertaking offers for battery electric vehicles from China
Guidance for proposed alternatives to countervailing duties.
Public authority
Commission accepts a price undertaking from Volkswagen (Anhui)
A specific undertaking for the CUPRA Tavascan; it is not a general exemption for all China-made cars.
Intergovernmental research
EV Battery Supply Chain Sustainability
Lifecycle comparisons include vehicle and battery production and use. Results depend on assumptions and location.
Intergovernmental research
Compare lifecycle emissions from electric and conventional cars
An explanation and link to the IEA’s scenario-based lifecycle comparison tool.
Intergovernmental research
Sustainable and Responsible Critical Mineral Supply Chains
Environmental, social and governance risks vary by mineral, location and production method.
Public authority
Lithium-ion battery supply chains: child-labour risks
Documents supply-chain risks involving cobalt from the DRC; does not establish that all cobalt or all batteries involve child labour.
Industry-commissioned study
EU collection and recycling of lead-based automotive batteries
Commissioned by ACEA, JAMA, KAMA, EUROBAT and ILA. Fourteen European markets, approximately 92% of the European vehicle parc in 2017; calculated rate 97.3%.
Public research
Technology Strategy Assessment: Lead-Acid Batteries
Established uses, performance limits and research needs for lead batteries, particularly long-duration storage.
Public health authority
Recycling used lead-acid batteries: health considerations
Explains exposure risks and the need for controls in lead-battery recycling.
Public health authority
Lead poisoning and health
Lead is toxic. A high recycling rate does not eliminate risks to workers, children or surrounding communities.
Accident investigator
Safety risks to emergency responders from lithium-ion battery fires in electric vehicles
Four investigated EV fire events. Evidence of response hazards, not a fleet-normalised estimate of fire frequency.
Accident investigator
Improperly secured battery cargo led to two fires aboard Genius Star XI
Stationary battery energy storage cargo, not electric cars; vessel damage without a reported total loss.
Accident investigator
Fire aboard and sinking of yacht Flagship
The investigation identified thermal runaway in a lithium-ion battery bank, an inoperable management system and manual charging.
Local public authority
Update on the Vistra Moss Landing battery facility
Documents the January fire, February reignition and subsequent work. This update does not establish the initial ignition cause.
Fire authority
Airport car park fire started accidentally
The service identifies a diesel vehicle, not a mild hybrid or a plug-in electric vehicle.
Fire authority
London Luton Airport car park fire report
The service’s published incident review and operational learning.
Public safety agency
Guidance on the carriage of alternative fuel vehicles in ro-ro spaces
Maritime guidance addressing alternative-fuel vehicle hazards and shipboard risk controls.
Image credit
“Containerterminal Bremerhaven/Weser” — BAW_Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau (Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute), August 2019. Wikimedia Commons source ↗ · Original publication ↗ · CC BY 2.0 ↗.
The photograph is resized, cropped in the layout and lightly desaturated. It shows a vehicle terminal; the source does not identify these vehicles as electric.
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