Technical standards are typically dismissed as the province of industry insiders, tedious esoterica that is of concern only to obsessives. In reality, standards matter greatly. Not only do they set levels of accessibility, safety and security for products, but the proponents of particular standards usually have an advantage in exploiting them for commercial purposes. That is why there has been celebration among Japanese manufacturers of the agreement among Japanese and Chinese industry groups on standards for the next generation of chargers for electric vehicles (EVs). That agreement will likely become the global norm, affording those manufacturers a real boost in the race to dominate a critical market.

The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions depends on decreases in the use of fossil fuels, and central to that effort is the move away from internal combustion engines to EVs. It is estimated that a record 1.1 million EVs were sold worldwide in 2017, and that number is projected to increase 10 times to 11 million in 2025 and then to 30 million in 2030. If all vehicles are counted — cars and busses — there are already 4 million EVs on the road today and the 5 million mark will be topped next March. The International Energy Agency reckons that total EV ownership will reach 125 million by 2030, but it could even go as high as 220 million with aggressive government policies.

The single biggest market is China, which accounts for over a third — 37 percent — of passenger EVs sold worldwide since 2011 and around 99 percent of e-buses. Just over a quarter of new EV sales will occur in Europe and slightly less will be sold in the United States. China is expected to account for nearly 50 percent of the global EV market by 2025. Japan has sold just 120,000 all-electric cars in the last decade, a small fraction of the 7.3 million hybrid cars that have been sold here over the same time.