Fortunately, it looks like the cost per kilowatt-hour is continuing to trend down, and according to a new report from energy research firm BloombergNEF (New Energy Finance), the market average should be $101 per kWh by 2023. The $100-per-kWh price point is where experts expect the cost of EVs to match the prices of comparable gas-powered vehicles. If federal and state tax credits are still available at that time, it’s likely that they could make an EV cheaper than a gas car to buy.

The report notes that the battery packs of buses in China have already dipped below the $100-per-kWh price point. As for the average global price for batteries in 2020 across all EV segments (including personal vehicles, buses, stationary battery solutions, and commercial EVs), it hit a new low of $137 per /kWh. That’s an 89 percent drop from 2010, when the price was $1100 per kWh.

BloombergNEF cites increased production due to sales growth, falling manufacturing costs, the price of cathode materials, and new pack designs as the main contributors to the drop in price. Essentially, it's basic economics. If you make more of something, the prices fall as the entire ecosystem adjusts and becomes more efficient.