Events and actions over the past year seem to be aligning to create a robust environment for electric vehicle growth. The combination of an environmental disaster, an expanding infrastructure, and the commercialization of electric car technology is creating opportunity for a new American carmaker.

environmental disaster

BP, the oil company that at this point needs no introduction, only just capped the oil shooting like a geyser into the Gulf of Mexico. And while President Obama is not taking this opportunity to tout legislation that could move America away from oil dependence, several environmental advocate groups are.

The Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), and VoteVets.org Action Fund have launched several TV ads pressuring influential senators to support new climate and energy legislation.

The Sierra Club’s Michael Brune told TreeHugger:

As the nation continues to grapple with the BP oil disaster, one thing remains very clear–the urgent need to end to our dependence on oil. Now is the time for real action from our nation’s leaders to craft a foundation on which we can build an America free from oil addiction, create millions of new clean energy manufacturing, construction, and service jobs here at home, and reduce the carbon pollution that is threatening our economy, our health, and our climate. We’re joining our colleagues in the national security, labor, and conservationist communities today to tell senators that the American people won’t tolerate shills for Big Oil and won’t settle for anything less than a clean energy future.

Pushing for new energy legislation is certainly logical, perhaps even imperative, in the face of one of the worst environmental crises this nation has ever faced.

smart grid infrastructure

Maybe you’ve heard of the “smart grid” system electric companies have been touting. It’s basically a system that distributes energy from suppliers to consumers by using two-way digital technology to control the flow of electricity, save energy, reduce costs and improve reliability. Many experts believe that without a smart-grid, the infrastructure won’t be in place to support clean energy growth. Fortunately, the Department of Energy (DOE) has announced grants and loans totaling more than $8.1 billion dollars (in public and private funds) to jump-start the smart grid industry. Many U.S. utilities are using ratepayer funds to build the backbone on which our clean energy revolution will supposedly be carried.

tesla motors

Last month, Tesla Motors went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange. It was the first American car company to do so since Ford made its debut in 1956. The market responded by giving Tesla stock a 40 percent boost on June 29, its first day of trading (though subsequent trading has erased some of that gain). The company plans to use the money raised by the IPO to fund its expansion. And while Tesla is not yet a profitable company– it has already burned through $230.5 million in cash–the company had the second-biggest gain for an IPO this year. Perhaps it was a sign that confidence has returned to the IPO market, or maybe investors are ready once again to give clean-tech companies higher valuations compared to their “traditional” counterparts. Hopefully, the stock gains are a reflection of investors seeing the larger picture with Tesla.

Tesla received a $465 million loan from the DOE to develop electric cars. Toyota has pledged to purchase $50 million in shares alongside the IPO, and Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, automaker Daimler AG, and the government of Abu Dhabi are among Tesla’s investors.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk told Bloomberg Television that the company could be profitable making just the roadster and selling powertrain components through its partnerships with Daimler, Toyota, and others. But Tesla has big expansion plans for the next couple years, and that will keep the company in the red for awhile. The company needs to concentrate on developing and producing its latest car: the Model S sedan. Once Tesla’s Northern California factory is running, expect them to sell plenty of cars (at $57,000 each) to people who might otherwise have bought a BMW 5-series.

While there are plenty of alternatives to generating power from fossil fuels, there have been very few viable alternatives to gasoline. Instead of concentrating on developing fuel alternatives, companies like Tesla are attempting to ride the coming wave of clean, affordable electricity to power vehicles. Perhaps the timing is right for an electric vehicle revolution. Americans seem to be sick over the situation in the Gulf of Mexico, smart grids are rolling out across the land, and Tesla just launched a successful IPO with a factory rollout to come. We’re hopeful this is the right combination of technology-meets-timing to drive a flood of electric vehicles onto U.S. roads.

photo credits: SkyTruth/Flickr and Tesla Motors

On Wednesday the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved an interpretive guidance on existing SEC disclosure regulation to ensure consistency in reporting climate risks for all publicly traded companies.

The SEC provided a video of Chairman Schapiro explaining the interpretive release. She reminds us that:

It is neither surprising nor especially remarkable for us to conclude that of course a company must consider whether potential legislation—whether that legislation concerns climate change or new licensing requirements—is likely to occur. If so, then under our traditional framework the company must then evaluate the impact it would have on the company’s liquidity, capital resources, or results of operations, and disclose to shareholders when that potential impact will be material. Similarly, a company must disclose the significant risks that it faces, whether those risks are due to increased competition or severe weather. These principles of materiality form the bedrock of our disclosure framework.

The ruling this week is being lauded by major institutional investors and environmental groups. The Chief Executive Officer of the California Public Employees Retirement System, Anne Stausboll, told the Environmental News Service that, “Investors have a right to know which companies are planning to be part of the clean energy future and which are lagging behind.” CALPERS is the largest public pension fund in the country and has manages $205 billion.

Clearly, the move to understanding and quantifying the risks posed by climate change is only going to increase. We’re curious to know if your business is already measuring these risks and how that process is working.