Sure, a Tesla has zero tailpipe emissions, but it charges from the grid, and the grid is powered by coal, so it can't really be considered clean, right? 

Today on Switched On we talk with Logan Goldie-Scot, who leads energy storage coverage for BloombergNEF, and BNEF Energy Storage Analyst James Frith. We'll discuss the CO2 footprints of electric vehicles and the batteries that go into them. EVs generally produce fewer lifetime emissions than vehicles with internal combustion engines, but there's a bit of nuance to this. It turns out it matters a lot where you are. James and Logan will explain this and the findings that throw BNEF squarely into the debate about whether EVs are actually clean. 

This episode is based on a report titled Lithium-Ion Battery Manufacturing Emissions, which can be found at: 

https://www.bnef.com/core/insights/20953 

BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal. 

Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.