FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 7, 2025
Salt Lake City, UT — Utah drivers have a new, custom-built online tool to help them explore how electric vehicles (EVs) stack up against gas-powered cars when it comes to both cost and emissions. Developed using localized information about Utah’s electricity grid and gas prices, the Cost & Emissions Comparison Tool offers an innovative and interactive way to compare vehicle models, emission scenarios, costs, and payback of a new car purchase using real-world, Utah-specific data.
This first-of-its-kind tool was developed by Adrian Martino, a recent data science graduate of the University of Utah’s Professional Science Master’s program, in partnership with local nonprofit Utah Clean Energy.
“One of the most common questions we get about going electric is, ‘What if an EV is powered by coal? Is it still better for the climate?’ This tool gives you a clear, data-driven answer,” states Kelbe Goupil, Senior Associate-Electrification at Utah Clean Energy. “Choosing what car you drive is a big decision. This is an incredibly useful resource for anyone curious about whether or not they should make the switch to an electric vehicle.”
Together, Martino and experts with Utah Clean Energy utilized public data from Rocky Mountain Power’s Integrated Resource Plan to project how emissions from electricity usage needed to fuel an EV compares with a gas car’s emissions. The result is a user-friendly platform that allows Utahns to easily plug in different scenarios to accurately compare emissions and costs side by side.
The Cost & Emissions Comparison Tool allows users to:
- Compare the fuel costs and payback periods of various EV and gas vehicle models.
- Compare the emission impacts of various electric and gas vehicle models.
- Customize your power source, including rooftop solar, Rocky Mountain Power’s current electricity mix, its actual forecasted future electricity mix, or even a 100% coal or 100% renewable grid.
The transportation sector is the largest source of CO2 emissions in the U.S., making electrifying vehicles a vital pathway to emission reductions. One factor that this tool clearly illustrates is that emission benefits are compounded as the electricity grid gets cleaner. The new tool provides clarity about Utah’s electricity grid as well as future projections. “What makes this tool uniquely powerful is the ability to toggle between different electricity grid scenarios,” states Martino. “Users can see how their vehicle emissions shift depending on the source of electricity powering an EV, as well as what their costs and payback will be using different sources of energy. Whether it’s today’s grid, a future cleaner grid, or a coal-heavy scenario, the tool makes it easy to visualize the environmental impact of each.”
This tool is now live and available to the public at https://hub.utahcleanenergy.org/compare-ev-costs-and-emissions/
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MEDIA CONTACTS:
Brandy Smith | Utah Clean Energy | 801.953.9985 (cell) |brandy@utahcleanenergy.org
Adrian Martino | Developer | adrian.martino@utah.edu | 301-787-610
We would like to clarify that Utah Clean Energy is not a solar company. We are a nonprofit organization that advocates for solar and other clean energy technologies, but we do not install or sell solar in any way.