Miles Per Gallon Equivalent (MPGe)

This is an energy efficiency metric that was introduced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2010 to compare the amount of energy consumed by alternative fuel vehicles to that of traditional gas-powered cars. Since electricity is not measure in gallons, a conversion factor is used to translate the fuel economy when running on electricity into miles per gallon of gasoline equivalent. According to the EPA, burning one gallon of gas produces 115,000 BTUs (British thermal units). To generate the same amount of heat by way of electricity, it takes 33.7 kilowatt-hours (kWh), which is the standard energy unit for electricity. If an electric vehicle can travel 100 miles on 33.7 kWh of electricity, the EPA rates it at 100 MPGe.