2019经济学人考研英文文章阅读五十三

Big carmakers are placing vast bets on electric vehicles

大型汽车制造商纷纷将目光投向电动车

From GM and Geely to Mitsubishi and Mercedes,giants of the industry are making battery-powered plans

从通用和吉利到三菱和奔驰，汽车行业的巨头们正在制定电力驱动的计划

In1900one in three cars on American roads ran on volts.Then oil began gushing out of Texas.Cheaper than batteries,and easier to top up,petrol fuelled the rise of mass-produced automobiles.

1900年，美国公路上有三分之一的车是电动车。随后石油在德克萨斯州被大量开采。由于汽油比电池更便宜，而且加油比充电更方便，可以说是汽油推动了汽车的大规模生产。

Cost and worries about limited range have kept electric vehicles(EVs)in a niche ever since.Tesla,which has made battery power sexy again in the past decade,produced just250,000units last year,a fraction of what Volkswagen or Toyota churn out annually.

从那以后，高昂的成本以及对有限续航里程的焦虑使得电动车一直处于一个利基市场。（注：利基市场是指在较大的细分市场中具有相似兴趣或需求的一小群顾客所占有的市场空间。）在过去十年里，特斯拉让电动车再度焕发光彩，但特斯拉去年的产量仅为25万辆，仅为大众或丰田产量的零头。

For every one of the2m or so pure EVs and plug-in hybrids,which combine batteries and internal-combustion engines(ICEs),sold in2018, the world’s carmakers shifted50petrol or diesel cars.

2018年，全球共售出纯电动汽车和插电式混合动力车（同时拥有电池和内燃机）200万辆，而汽油车和柴油车的销售量是它的50倍。

EV sales are,however,accelerating as quickly as electric motors themselves.Some industry-watchers reckon that they will account for nearly15%of the global total by2025.By then,one in five new cars in China will run on batteries,according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, a consultancy.

然而，如同电动机加速那样，电动汽车销售量的增长同样迅猛。一些行业观察人士估计，到2025年，电动车将占全球汽车总销量的约15％。据咨询公司彭博新能源财经估计，届时中国五分之一的新车都将是电动车。

The chief reason such optimistic forecasts no longer look outlandish is the entry into the electric race of the car industry’s juggernauts.A survey by Reuters in January put the industry’s total planned EV-related spending worldwide(including on batteries)at around$300bn over the next five to ten years.

如此乐观的预测已经不再显得荒谬了，其主要原因是汽车行业的巨头们也都加入到这场电动车的竞赛了。路透社今年1月的一项调查显示，未来5至10年，全球汽车行业计划在电动车方面（包括电池）投入近3000亿美元。

From GM and Geely to Mercedes and Nissan,big carmakers all want to turn out millions of such cars—and turn a profit doing so.Their strategies range from cautious to headstrong.

从通用和吉利到奔驰和日产，大型汽车制造商们都希望能够产出数以百万辆计的电动车，并且能从中盈利。它们的策略不尽相同，有的制造商谨小慎微，还有的则大胆激进。

Making a profitable,mass-produced EV has proved elusive.A battery powertrain can be three times the price of an ICE.But a combination of better technology and greater scale may soon allow EVs to compete on price with petrol vehicles,and enable motorists to drive long distances without the fear of running out of juice.

事实证明，要制造出一辆既能盈利又能量产的电动车并非一件易事。一个电池动力总成系统的价格是一台内燃机的三倍。但是，随着技术的提高与生产规模的加大相结合，电动车的价格很快就能和燃油汽车有的一比了，并且还能让驾驶者在长途驾驶时不再有续航里程焦虑。