Innovation policy for the promotion of electric vehicles in developed countries (Japan, Sweden, and Germany)

Abstract: Though the diffusion of electric vehicle (EV) is high on the global agenda, and there are efforts to speed up the shift: some countries intend to ban the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEV), and some OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) have announced the goal of electrification, the diffusion of EV is slowly. Technological innovation theory explains that we need to harmonise technological development, socio-technical reconfiguration, and social movement for a technological transition, and especially in the case of carbon-saving technology, the destabilization of the socio-technical regime is crucial to the transition (Geels, 2002, 2014). Additionally, some studies emphasise the importance of shifting OEMs’ business strategies (Kieckhäfer et al, 2017). In this thesis, I give an overview of the barriers to EV promotion structurally reflecting these theories and the present situation, and then analyse ways of diffusing and the governmental role in this process, especially in Japan, Sweden, and Germany, countries famous for their automobile industries. I collect some time series data about EV assets for OEMs and then examine the relationship between the data and the latest regulation trends in global. I also conduct interviews with OEMs and policy. Through the data analysis and interviews, I find that the trend of regulations today has affected the increase in EV assets and the shift of OEMs’ strategies to electrification, and that regulations which give OEMs an incentive to pursue EV development are crucial to the technological transition from ICEV to EVs