Norway setting the EV pace

Norway continues to lead the global market for electric vehicles, according to the most recent plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) index from IHS Automotive.

Based on analysis of new vehicle registrations during the first quarter 2016, one out of every three vehicles registered in Norway during the quarter was a plug-in electric vehicle, reflecting more market penetration in Norway than any other major market tracked by IHS Markit.

In a previous study from IHS Markit, one in four vehicles registered in Norway during the same timeframe a year ago were a PEV, which demonstrates the continued commitment to alternative propulsion vehicles in this country.

The Netherlands is also a hot market for electric vehicles, but has lost momentum recently and trails significantly behind with just 2.2 per cent share of all new vehicles registered there being electric. France is gaining, with a 1.6 per cent share. The UK is the only other market tracked with share of more than one per cent, with 1.3 per cent of all vehicles electric.

While China leads in volume, with more than 32,000 electric vehicles registered during the quarter, its market share for EVs is just 0.5 per cent.

Ben Scott, senior automotive analyst for IHS Markit, said, ‘Attractive incentives in France are spurring EV growth there. However, a recent change in PEV taxation in the Netherlands has somewhat inhibited the market in this country.

‘Consumers in Japan have been more interested in traditional hybrids. However recent changes in subsidy may drive PEV uptake as well as hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.’

In current forecasts from IHS Markit, it is expected that plug-in electric vehicles will account for just 4 percent of light vehicles produced globally in 2020, up from about 1 percent in 2016, when the company expects an estimated one million electric vehicles produced globally by the end of the year.

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