US Department of Energy Releases Updated Transportation Technology Baseline with Latest Cost and Performance Data
The U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has released the 2024 Transportation Annual Technology Baseline (ATB) Update, providing the latest cost and performance data for transportation vehicle and fuel technologies.
This update brings crucial information for analyzing technological advancements in vehicles and fuels to help policymakers, researchers, and industry professionals make informed decisions about future energy policies. The 2024 ATB joins the Electricity ATB, which released its 10th annual update earlier this year, providing consistency across analysis projects and modeling.
"More analysts are turning to the Transportation ATB for their analyses, so we want to ensure that they have access to detailed, credible data that keep up with technological advancements," said Laura Vimmerstedt, Lead of the Transportation ATB. "This means regularly updating the ATB to reflect the latest insights and improving the data offerings to meet the needs of transportation analysis."
The 2024 Transportation ATB Update offers a wide range of vehicle data for base year as well as trajectory out to 2050 for fuel economy, modeled vehicle price, levelized cost of driving, and emissions. This includes metrics for various vehicle classes and powertrains, as well as comparisons between them.
Additionally, the Transportation ATB provides fuels data, including cost, production characteristics, and emissions estimates for selected fuels pathways in four categories: on-road fuels, blendstocks, marine fuels, and aviation fuels. Assumptions used to calculate vehicle and fuel costs are also available, promoting transparency and consistency across analyses.
The update incorporates new features such as updated recharging and hydrogen refueling costs, expanded biomass-to-biofuels pathways, and additional comparisons with other sources for vehicle base year and projected information.
According to ATB Lead Laura Vimmerstedt, "We want to provide the Transportation ATB data to help users meet their analysis needs," emphasizing the importance of regular updates and expanded data offerings.
The 2024 Transportation ATB Update is now available online and will be discussed in a free informational webinar on December 3, 2024, at 9 a.m. MT, featuring presentations from the ATB team and interactive demos. Registration for the webinar is now open and can be accessed through the Transportation ATB website.
To stay informed about the Transportation ATB Update and its resources, individuals are encouraged to follow the Transportation ATB social media channels and register for upcoming webinars.