Electric and hybrid vehicle sales are persistently increasing in European Union. It was seen that electric and Hybrid vehicles accounted for 43% of new car sales in Q3. The information is according to the data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).
Fully electric vehicles, and plug-in hybrids made up less than 40% of all sales in the same period last year, the association said. More than one in 10 cars sold, or 11.9% was a fully electric, zero-emission model as sales of such models rose 22% versus the third quarter of 2021. The EU has backed an effective ban on new fossil fuel vehicles from 2035, so eventually, all cars will have to be zero-emission models. National and local governments have been pulling back on subsidies for plug-in hybrids in favor of fully-electric cars. Plug-in hybrid sales fell 6% during the third quarter.
Petrol car sales were down 3.3% but petrol cars remained the most popular in the EU with 37.8% of total sales. Diesel cars accounted for 16.5% of sales after a 4.7% drop year on year. As recently as 2015, diesel vehicles accounted for nearly 52% of EU car sales. But sales have fallen continuously in the wake of Volkswagen’s “DIselgate” emissions cheating scandal.
EU EV sales
More than one in 10 cars sold, or 11.9%, was a fully electric, zero-emission model as sales of these rose 22% compared with the third quarter of 2021. The EU has backed an effective ban on new fossil-fuel vehicles from 2035, so eventually, all cars will have to be zero-emission models. National and local governments have been pulling back on subsidies for plug-in hybrids in favor of fully electric cars. Sales of the former fell 6% during the third quarter.
The transport sector is among the largest contributors to EU greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, reducing transport emissions is key to meeting the EU’s climate neutrality objectives. Electric cars, which include battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), are gradually penetrating the EU market. There has been a steady increase in the number of new electric car registrations annually, from 600 in 2010 to about 1,061,000 units in 2020, when they accounted for 11% of new registrations. In 2021, electric car registrations surged, accounting for almost 18% of newly registered passenger cars.
The mass of a BEV stabilized over the last 4 years to an average of 1,600-1,700kg; while PHEVs are slightly heavier, with an average mass of around 1,900kg. In 2021, the average energy consumption of BEVs and PHEVs were around 166kWh/km and 175 kWh/km, respectively. In electric mode, the two types can travel 371km (BEVs)and 58km (PHEVs), respectively.
