In a world of exhaustible resources and rising consumer demands, tech-nology is playing an all-important role. One of the most precious natural resources, oil, is a major cause of concern, today, with its increased consumption which leads to environmental degradation and soaring prices. Global warming due to greenhouse gas emissions [methane] is forcing mankind to find ways to prevent this environmental degradation. Personal transportation being the world's largest consumer of oil, the global automotive industry accounts for about 30% of the greenhouse gas emissions in developed countries. Increased awareness of environmental degradation and security concerns over energy are simultaneously fueling more stringent and widespread regulations on CO2 emissions and the fuel economy, which is stimulating new and improved technology. This has ultimately resulted in automobile manufacturers trying to create hybrid cars, which are both fuel-efficient and less polluting.
A couple of years back William Ford, CEO of Ford Motors, predicted that hybrids could make up 75% of the car market by 2025 and, perhaps, this may come true going by the hybrid offerings of various automakers as well as the positive response from consumers. A number of leading global players in the automobile sector are coming out with hybrid cars and are vying to get their hands on the latest hybrid engine technology. DaimlerChrysler, General Motors, BMW, Toyota, Honda, Ford, Volkswagen, Porsche and Mitsubishi are some of the leading names in the list of automakers that have already launched or have announced their plans to come out with hybrid cars. Hybrids provide both constraints as well as opportunities to these automakers, since they have to constantly evolve and upgrade their vehicles while simultaneously having a chance to cater to a new market. If improvements are made in cost and the present statistics are anything to go by, TechCast, a virtual think-tank tracking technology revolution, estimates a 30% adoption of hybrids by 2012, which would easily mean a global market of more than a trillion dollars.
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