When it comes to introducing a potential new vehicle to your fleet, stakeholders often want to talk money. This step-by-step equation from Tim Coxwell, Fleet Management Division Director for the Leon County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office shows you how to calculate the savings of an EV vs. an ICE vehicle.
You can find the steps below. Or click through the gallery to see an example chart showing the steps.
Break down the fleet numbers into make and model, totaling the number of units from each model (i.e. 2 Ford Police Interceptor Utilities (PIUs), 6 Chevrolet Tahoe Police Pursuit Vehicles, etc.)
Determine the actual or estimated annual mileage per vehicle.
Multiply the number of units in service per make and model by the mileage to determine the total annual mileage by model.
Divide the total number of annual mileage for one of your models by 100-mile intervals. This is because EV makes and models provide data in the KWh required to travel 100 miles (i.e. 24 kWh/100 mi). This gives you the number of 100-mile intervals for the vehicles.
Choose an EV model you want to compare your ICE vehicles to. Multiply your number of 100-mile intervals by the kWh/100 mi rating on the selected EV. This identifies how much power in kWh you will need to travel the annual mileage recorded.
Locate your local kWh rates either through your utility provider or through the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Multiply the annual kWh by your local rates. This determines the cost to drive your annual mileage with the EV you’ve selected to replace your ICE vehicle. Repeat this step with the other vehicles on your fleet.
Determine how much it would cost to drive the same annual mileage with your ICE vehicle at its current fuel efficiency level by:
Finding the local cost of fuel per gallon.
Determining fuel efficiency on a specific vehicle.
Dividing the annual mileage by fuel efficiency. This determines your fuel gallons to be used.
Multiply your fuel gallons to be used by your forecasted fuel cost per gallon. This determines what it would cost using an ICE vehicle to travel the annual mileage.
Compare your cost of electricity to drive an EV your annual mileage to the cost to drive your current ICE vehicle the same distance.
