Electric car use by country

For the more general category of electric drive for all type of vehicles, see electric vehicle. For the specific electric drive cars, see electric car and plug-in electric vehicle.

Global top-selling light-duty plug-in electric vehicle regional or country markets as of December 2019.

Comparison of plug-in electric car ownership per capita in selected top selling countries and regional markets as plug-in cars per 1,000 people, as of December 2018.

Electric car use by country varies worldwide, as the adoption of plug-in electric vehicles is affected by consumer demand, market prices, availability of charging infrastructure, and government policies, such as purchase incentives and long term regulatory signals (ZEV mandates, CO₂ emissions regulations, fuel economy standards, and phase-out of internal combustion engine vehicles).

Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) are generally divided into all-electric or battery electric vehicles (BEVs), that run only on batteries, and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), that combine battery power with internal combustion engines. The popularity of electric vehicles has been expanding rapidly due to government subsidies, their increased range and lower battery costs, and environmental sensitivity. However, the stock of plug-in electric cars represented just about 1 out of every 250 motor vehicles on the world's roads by December 2018.

Global cumulative sales of highway-legal light-duty plug-in vehicles reached 2 million units at the end of 2016, 3 million in November 2017, and the 5 million milestone in December 2018. By the end of 2019 the stock of light-duty plug-in vehicles totaled about 7.5 million units. Sales of plug-in passenger cars achieved a 2.5% market share of new car sales in 2019, up from 2.1% in 2018, and 1.3% in 2017. The PEV market is shifting towards fully electric battery vehicles. The global ratio between BEVs and PHEVs went from 56:44 in 2012, to 60:40 in 2015, and rose to 74:26 in 2019.

As of December 2019, China had the largest stock of highway legal plug-in passenger cars with 3.4 million units, 47% of the global fleet in use. China also dominates the plug-in light commercial vehicle and electric bus deployment, with its stock reaching over 500,000 buses in 2019, 98% of the global stock, and 247,500 electric light commercial vehicles, 65% of the global fleet.

As of December 2019, the United States had 1.45 million plug-in cars, 20% of the global stock, with California as the largest U.S. plug-in regional market with almost 670,000 plug-in cars sold up until December 2019. Europe had 1.7 million plug-in passenger cars at the end of 2019, accounting for 25% of the global stock. Europe also has the second largest electric light commercial vehicle stock, with over 115,000 units, 31% of the global stock in 2019.

Norway is the leading European country with over 384,000 light-duty plug-ins registered by the end of 2019. Norway has the highest market penetration per capita in the world, and also has the world's largest plug-in segment market share of new car sales, 55.9% in 2019. Over 10% of all passenger cars on Norwegian roads were plug-ins in October 2018, and rose to 13% in 2019. The Netherlands has the highest density of EV charging stations in the world by 2019.

History

Evolution of the ratio between global sales of BEVs and PHEVs from 2011 to 2019.

The global stock of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) between 2005 and 2009 consisted exclusively of all-electric cars (BEV), totaling about 1,700 units in 2005, and almost 6,000 in 2009. The plug-in stock rose to about 12,500 units in 2010, of which 350 were plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). By comparison, during the Golden Age of the electric car at the beginning of the 20th century, the EV stock peaked at approximately 30,000 vehicles. After the introduction of the Nissan Leaf and the Chevrolet Volt in late December 2010, the first mass-production plug-in electric cars by major manufacturers, plug-in sales grew to about 50,000 units in 2011, to 125,000 in 2012, and almost 213,000 cars and utility vans in 2013. Sales totaled over 315,000 units in 2014, up 48% from 2013. In March 2014, Norway became the first country where over 1 in every 100 passenger cars on the roads was a plug-in, and, by October 2018, 1 in every 10 passenger cars registered in Norway was a plug-in.

In five years, global sales of highway legal light-duty plug-in vehicles increased more than ten-fold, totaling more than 565,000 units in 2015—an 80% increase from 2014, driven mainly by China and Europe. About 775,000 plug-in electric cars and vans were sold in 2016, and 1.22 million in 2017—up 57% from 2016—with China accounting for about half of global sales. The global market share of the new light-duty plug-in segment reached 1.3% in 2017, up from 0.86% in 2016, and 0.38% in 2014. Global light-duty plug-in vehicle sales passed the 3 million milestone in November 2017 and 5 million at the end 2018. Global sales totaled 2,018,247 plug-in passenger cars in 2018, up 72% from 2017, with a market share of 2.1%. The BEV:PHEV ratio rose to 69:31 in 2018 and to 74:26 in 2019. By the end of 2019 the stock of light-duty plug-in vehicles totaled about 7.5 million units. Worldwide sales in 2019 rose to 2,209,831 units with a global market share of 2.5%.

Annual sales of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles in the world's top markets since 2011.

Market share of new plug-in light-duty vehicles in China, Europe and the United States between 2015 and 2019.

Date	Milestone
1996	Launch of the limited production General Motors EV1
1997	Launch of the Toyota RAV4 EV
December 2008	100th Tesla Roadster delivered
December 2010	Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt deliveries began
December 2012	Annual global sales passed the 100,000 mark
March 2014	Norway achieves 1% of cars on the road as plug-ins
2014	EU adopt the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive in 2014.
December 2014	100,000th plug-in sold in Japan
September 2015	Cumulative global plug-in sales passed 1 million units.
March 2016	500,000th new energy vehicle sold in China (includes heavy-duty commercial vehicles)
	100,000th plug-in sold in Norway
May 2016	500,000th plug-in sold in Europe
August 2016	500,000th plug-in sold in the U.S
September 2016	500,000th new energy passenger car sold in China
	Global all-electric car/van sales passed 1 million.
October 2016	100,000th plug-in sold in France
November 2016	100,000th plug-in sold in the Netherlands
December 2016	Cumulative global plug-in sales passed 2 million units
	5% of passenger cars on Norwegian roads are plug-ins
November 2017	Cumulative global plug-in sales passed 3 million units
December 2017	Annual global sales passed the 1 million unit mark
	Annual global market share passed 1% for the first time
First half 2018	1 million plug-in electric cars sold in Europe
September 2018	1 million plug-in electric cars sold in the U.S.
	2 million new energy passenger cars sold in China (includes heavy-duty commercial vehicles)
October 2018	10% of passenger cars on Norwegian roads are plug-ins
	Netherlands has the highest density of EV chargers (19.3 chargers per 100 km of paved road)
November 2018	500,000th plug-in car sold in California
December 2018	Annual global sales passed the 2 million unit mark
	Annual sales of EVs passed 1 million in China
	Cumulative global plug-in sales passed 5 million units
	USA reaches highest monthly EV sales of 50,000
	Tesla Model 3 becomes first EV to exceed 100,000 sales mark in a single year
	China surpasses 200,000 electric car sales in a single month
March 2019	Europe surpassed 60,000 electric car sales in a single month for the first time
June 2019	China's Electric Vehicle Charging Posts surpasses 1 million
December 2019	China raises EV target to 25% EV sales by 2025
	Germany passes Norway becoming Europe's largest EV market in 2019 by annual sales volume (108,839)

Statistics

Stock

Light-duty plug-in electric vehicle cumulative sales or stock, ownership per capita,
and market penetration in the top PEV selling countries and regional markets as of December 2018

Country	PEV stock/cumulative sales			Population 2018 (millions)	Plug-in cars per 1,000 people (2018)	% Plug-in passenger cars on the road
	2019	2018	2017
China		2,243,772	1,227,770	1,394.2	1.6	0.94% (2018)
USA		1,126,000	764,666	328.5	3.4	0.45% (2018)
Norway		296,215	209,122	5.3	55.9	10.7% (2018)
Japan		257,363	205,350	126.3	2.0	—
UK		197,000	137,000	66.0	3.2	0.2% (2016)
France		204,617	149,797	67.0	3.1	0.2% (2016)
Germany		196,750	129,246	82.9	2.4	0.1% (2016)
Netherlands		145,882	121,540	17.3	8.4	1.7% (2018)
Canada		81,435	45,950	37.3	2.2	0.14% (2020)
Sweden		79,579	49,670	10.2	7.8	0.6% (2016)
Global total		5,127,297	3,109,050	7,700	0.7	0.4% (2018)
Light-duty plug-in cumulative registrations in selected regional markets
Europe		1,346,435	940,383	526.7	2.6	0.5% (2018)
California		526,199	368,540	39.6	13.3	2.1% (2018)
Plug-in vehicle cumulative sales for all class segments in China
China (all class segments)		2,984,447	1,728,447
Notes

Annual sales

Light-duty plug-in electric vehicle annual sales in the top PEV selling countries and regional markets as of December 2018

Country	Annual sales
	2017	2018	2019
China	579,000	1,016,002	1,204,000
United States	199,818	361,307	329,528
Norway	71,737	86,290
Japan	54,100	52,013
UK	49,182	59,911
France	42,799	53,745
Germany	54,492	67,504	108,839
Netherlands	11,085	29,187
Canada	18,746	33,879
Sweden	19,793	29,909	41,784
Global total	1,148,700	2,018,247
Light-duty plug-in cumulative registrations in selected regional markets
Europe	302,383	406,052
California	98,540	157,659
Plug-in vehicle cumulative sales for all class segments in China
China (all class segments)	777,000	1,256,000
Notes

Market share

Passenger plug-in market share of total new car sales for selected countries and selected regional markets since 2013

Country	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013
Norway	55.9%	49.1%	39.2%	29.1%	22.4%	13.8%	6.1%
Iceland	22.6%	19%	14.05%	4.6%	2.93%	2.71%	0.94%
Netherlands	15.1%	6.5%	2.6%	6.7%	9.9%	3.87%	5.55%
Sweden	11.4%	8.2%	5.2%	3.5%	2.62%	1.53%	0.71%
Finland	6.9%	4.7%	2.57%	1.2%	—	—	—
Portugal	5.7%	3.6%	1.9%	—	—	—	—
Switzerland	5.5%	3.2%	2.55%	1.8%	1.98%	0.75%	0.44%
China	4.9%	4.2%	2.1%	1.31%	0.84%	0.23%	0.08%
Andorra			5.6%	0.81%	—	—	—
Denmark	4.2%	2%	0.4%	0.6%	2.29%	0.88%	0.29%
Austria	3.5%	2.6%	2.06%	1.6%	0.90%	—	—
Belgium	3.2%	2.5%	2.7%	1.8%	—	—	—
Ireland	3.1%	1.57%	0.72%	0.48%	0.46%	0.27%	—
Germany	3.0%	1.9%	1.58%	1.1%	0.73%	0.43%	0.25%
Canada	3.0%	2.2%	0.92%	0.58%	0.35%	0.28%	0.18%
UK	2.9%	2.53%	1.86%	1.37%	1.07%	0.59%	0.16%
France	2.8%	2.11%	1.98%	1.4%	1.19%	0.70%	0.83%
New Zealand	2.8%	0.96%	0.72%	0.50%	0.23%	0.21%	—
United States	2.1%	2.1%	1.13%	0.90%	0.66%	0.72%	0.60%
Japan	0.9%	1.0%	1.1%	0.59%	0.68%	1.06%	0.91%
Global average	2.5%	2.1%	1.3%	0.86%
California	7.7%	7.8%	4.8%	3.6%	3.1%	3.2%	2.5%
Europe	3.6%	2.5%	1.74%	1.3%	1.41%	0.66%	0.49%
Hong Kong	5%			5%	4.84%		0.39%
Notes

Albania

Albania is considered one of the best countries for emissions for electric cars as it generates all of its electricity from hydroelectric power. Electric cars are currently used by the Albanian Police Force. The Interior Minister claimed, that the cost of fuel per 100 km (62 mi) would be less than 120 Albanian leke (less than 1 euro). Saytaxi is the first taxi company in Albania that offers electric vehicles and operates a fast EV (electric vehicles) charging point, and have been operating in the country since 2014. Its goal is to replace 80% of all non-electric cars with electric in the taxi business.

On 31 October 2017, Tirana became one of few European countries to use electric busses when they tested a Solaris Urbino 12, with the purpose of reducing pollution. Tirana's goal is to gradually convert 10 to 20 percent of the bus fleet into electric ones.

Australia

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Australia

Beginning in mid-2009, a twelve-month field trial was conducted with the Mitsubishi i-MiEV with potential electric vehicle customers, such as government bodies and fleet operators. The iMiEV remained the top selling electric vehicle in Australia through 2013. The Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV, became Australia's top selling EV in 2014 and remained the leader into 2016 with 2,015 units sold since its introduction. At the end of March 2015, Tesla Model S registrations totaled 119 in New South Wales and 54 in Victoria. Although no sales figures were reported for Tesla in other states, the combined sales of these two were enough for the Model S to rank as the top selling BEV car for the first quarter of 2015, ahead of the BMW i3 (46) and the Nissan Leaf (31). As of December 2016, about 1,000 Leafs had been sold since its 2012 introduction .

Chargepoint is the only major operator of a charging network in Australia.

The opposition government in Australia in 2019 proposed a 50% electric vehicle target by 2030. Government analysis in 2019 also forecasted 50% of all new cars sold in Australia by 2035 will be electric on the current path.

Victoria is Australia's most important electric vehicle market with the highest number of electric vehicle purchases in Australia between 2011 and 2017 with a total of 1,324 car sales. Victoria is also Australia's most important electric vehicle market because it had the highest number of electric vehicle chargers in the country. Similarly, Victoria's capital city Melbourne, had the highest concentration of electric vehicle chargers in Australia in 2017. Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland represent the largest markets in the country for electric car sales.

As of July 2019, the Australian government offers a higher luxury tax threshold for qualifying low emissions vehicles and the state of Victoria and Australian Capital Territory offer incentives for purchasing and owning electric vehicles e.g. stamp duty exemptions and registration discounts. However, the ACT offers the most financial and non-financial incentives for purchasing electric vehicles of any state in Australia.

Austria

Top ten electric vehicles sold in Austria, January to September 2019

	Model	Volume
1	Tesla Model 3	2035
2	BMW i3	918
3	Renault Zoe	779
4	VW e-Golf	610
5	Hyundai Kona	602
6	Nissan Leaf	444
7	Kia Niro	383
8	Audi e-tron	303
9	Tesla Model S	292
10	Hyundai Ioniq	253

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 1677 in 2015 to 6764 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 4913 new BEV were sold, representing 2.8% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	1677	3826	5433	6764	4913
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	1.5%	2.0%	2.8%

Belgium

Sales of electric cars rose from 97 units in 2009, to 116 in 2010, 425 in 2011, to 900 in 2012. Of the latter, only 350 units were sold to individuals. Then, sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 1358 in 2015 to 3647 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 4601 new BEV were sold, representing 1.5% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	1358	2054	2713	3647	4601
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.5%	0.7%	1.5%

The Belgian government established purchase incentives for BEVs, ending in 2012. Hybrids were not eligible. A separate subsidy supported investments in public charging stations.

Brazil

Nissan Leaf operating as a taxi at Santos Dumont airport as part of a demonstrations program in Rio de Janeiro.

Eco Vagas: parking spaces reserved for low emissions vehicles in Brasília.

As of September 2015, 2,214 hybrid and electric vehicles were registered in the state of São Paulo In March 2013, the first two Leafs were deployed in Rio de Janeiro to operate as taxis. In September 2014 the BMW i3 became the first EV available for retail customers. As of June 2016, other retail plug-ins were the BMW i8 and the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV.

Plug-ins and hybrids are subject to taxes adding up to more than 120% of the retail price.

In May 2014 São Paulo City passed a municipal law to exempt EV, hybrids and fuel cell vehicles from the city's driving restriction scheme (see also road space rationing#São Paulo) and purchase incentives.

In April 2018, the city of São José dos Campos ordered 30 electric vehicles for use by the police and government.

In March 2019, Renault released the Zoe in Brazil, and, in April 2019, Jac released the E40 as the cheapest electric car in Brazil, at R$129.990, Nissan announced the Leaf to be released in Brazil in the first half of 2019

Bulgaria

There were 560 electric motorbikes and 520 electric cars officially registered in Bulgaria by the end of March 2018. By early 2020 the total number of electric cars in Bulgaria is estimated to be at least 1100. Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 21 in 2015 to 194 in 2018, with only 6 in 2016. At the first half of 2019, 141 new BEV were sold, representing 0.7% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	21	6	68	194	141
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.2%	0.5%	0.7%

The government does not provide grants for buying electric cars, but at least it does not apply road tax to them. Parking electric vehicles in central urban parking zones is free of charge as well.

In 2012, 'green taxi' hybrid cabs went into service in Sofia. In 2017, test electric buses joined the public transport fleet of Sofia and in 2018 and 2019, 35 new electric buses went into service. It is estimated that by 2021, 20% of the bus fleet of Sofia will be electric. Other cities and towns such as Plovdiv, Pernik and Haskovo are also ordering electric buses.

The first car sharing company in Bulgaria Spark.bg uses only electric cars, mostly E-up!s and in early 2020, had at least 350 electric vehicles. Courier company Speedy uses 20 electric Renault Kangoo.

Canada

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Canada

The Chevrolet Volt is the all-time top selling EV in Canada. Shown here is a fleet of Volts at a solar-powered charging station in Toronto.

The stock of plug-in electric passenger cars in Canada totaled 45,950 units at the end of 2017, consisting of 23,620 all-electric cars and 22,330 plug-in hybrids. The market share of the plug-in segment accounted for 1.4% of all new car sales for December 2017, and 0.9% for 2017. The Chevrolet Volt was the top selling PHEV, with cumulative sales of 13,619 units through December 2017, and the Tesla Model S was the top selling BEV with 6,731 units sold as of December 2017.

Purchase and other incentives for new EVs are offered by the provinces of Quebec and British Columbia.

In October 2016, Quebec passed legislation that obliges major carmakers to offer an increasing number of PHEV and BEV models, beginning with 3.5% in 2018 and rising to 15.5% in 2020, using a tradable credit system.

China

Main article: New energy vehicles in China

Annual sales of new energy vehicles in China between 2011 and 2019.

China is by far the largest electric car market in the world. As of December 2019, China had the largest stock of highway legal plug-in passenger cars with 3.4 million units, 47% of the global fleet in use. China also dominates the plug-in light commercial vehicle and electric bus deployment, with its stock reaching over 500,000 buses in 2019, 98% of the global stock, and 247,500 electric light commercial vehicles, 65% of the global fleet. In addition, the country also leads sales of medium- and heavy duty electric trucks, with over 12,000 trucks sold, and nearly all battery electric. Since 2011, combined sales of all classes of new energy vehicles (NEV) totaled almost 4.2 million at the end of 2019.

Domestically-produced vehicles accounted for about 96% of total plug-in electric vehicle sales. As of December 2018, the NEV stock consisted of 2,369,088 all-electric vehicles (79.4%) and 641,359 plug-in hybrid vehicles (20.6%). Entry-level vehicles dominate the Chinese plug-in passenger market. The highest selling electric car in 2017 and 2018 was the BAIC EC-Series with 78,079 and 90,637 units sold respectively. Prior to this, the highest selling plug-in vehicle was the BYD Tang PHEV SUV with 31,405 sales in 2016.

Government incentives

The Chinese government adopted in 2009 a plan to become one of the world leaders in producing EVs. The plan has four goals: create a world-leading industry; energy security; reduce urban air pollution; and to reduce carbon emissions. In June 2012 the State Council published a plan to develop the domestic industry. The plan set a sales target of 500,000 new EVs by 2015 and 5 million by 2020. Initial sales were much lower than expected, while most output was purchased for public fleets. New incentives were issued in 2014, with a sales target of 160,000 units for 2014. This goal was also not achieved.

The Chinese government uses the term new energy vehicles (NEVs) to designate plug-ins and electrics. Only EVs are eligible for purchase incentives. The Chinese government has put forward the strategy of "Energy Saving and Electric Vehicles". The policy measures of this strategy mainly focused on carrying out pilots to subsidize EV buyers, promoting charging facilities construction and accelerating EVs commercialization. On 1 June 2010, the government announced a trial program to provide financial incentives in five cities. A 2013 joint announcement by the National Development and Reform Commission and finance, science, and industry ministries offered a maximum of US$9,800 toward the purchase of a BEV passenger vehicle and up to US$81,600 for electric buses. In April 2016 the Traffic Management Bureau under the Ministry of Public Security announced special green license plates to facilitate preferential traffic policies.

Chile

Mitsubishi i-MiEV in Chile

The Mitsubishi i-MiEV was the first EV in Chile. The first public quick charging station was opened in April 2011.

In August 2014 Mitsubishi replaced the i-Miev with the Outlander PHEV. Later that year BMW introduced their "i" range with the i3; Renault launched their Zero Emission (Z.E.) lineup, including the Fluence Z.E. sedan, the Kangoo utility van and Zoe city car. The French brand sold 22 electric vehicles in their first month in the Chilean market.

Colombia

The BEV Renault Twizy quadracycle is the top selling electric vehicle in Colombia.

Latin America's first battery electric taxi fleet of 45 vehicles was launched at the beginning of 2013 in Bogotá, the largest electric taxi fleet in South America at the time. These taxis were exempted from the Pico y placa driving restriction scheme. The program is an effort to improve air quality and set an example.

The BMW i3 was introduced in Colombia in 2014. The BEV Renault Twizy quadracycle was introduced in the Colombian market in June 2015 and, as of October 2015, 203 Twizys had been sold. Sales of the Outlander P-HEV were scheduled to begin in September 2015. Sales of other electric vehicles totaled, as of June 2015, 35 Mitsubishi i-MiEVs (purchased by an electricity company), 25 BMW i3s, 19 Renault Kangoos (corporate purchases), and 4 Nissan Leafs (corporate purchases).

In 2013 the government established incentives to promote EV adoption. These include the exemption from the driving restriction scheme in place in Colombian cities such as Bogotá and Medellín. The government exempted BEV and PHEV cars from import duties for three years, with an annual quota of 750 cars of each type.

Costa Rica

Mitsubishi i-MiEV purchased by the US embassy in Costa Rica.

As of January 2015, the Costa Rican stock of electric drive vehicles consisted of 477 hybrid electric vehicles and 2,229 electric vehicles. Plug-in car sales totaled 108 units in 2016. The top selling model was the Outlander P-HEV with 60 units.

In 2006 electric cars were exempted from the consumption tax, while conventional vehicles faced a 30% rate. In October 2012, electric cars were exempted from San José's driving restrictions. EVs were exempted from import duties and the government agreed to deploy charging stations in strategic locations in San José.

The first electric car to go on sale was the REVAi, introduced in March 2009. The REVAi, powered by lead–acid batteries, sold 10 units. The Mitsubishi i MiEV was launched in February 2011, with initial availability of 25 to 50 units.

In January 2013 the Costa Rican Ministry of Environment and Energy deployed 200 electric SUVs for use as "green taxis." Electric/hybrid cars sold in Costa Rica include the BYD Qin (November 2013), Mitsubishi Outlander (March 2015) and BMW i3 (September 2016).

Croatia

As of December 2016, 2067 electric cars had been sold in Croatia. Of these, 224 were EVs, while the rest were hybrids. As of September 2017, 201 free public charging stations operated in Croatia.

In 2014 and 2015, the Croatian government initiated purchase incentives. The subsidies were discontinued in 2016, due to ineffectiveness.

Czech Republic

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 298 in 2015 to 703 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 360 new BEV were sold, representing 0.3% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	298	200	387	703	360
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.1%	0.3%	0.3%

Denmark

As of December 2015, around 4,000 electric cars had been sold in Denmark. Denmark was the second largest European market for light-duty, plug-in commercial vehicles or utility vans, with over 2,600 plug-in vans sold that year, representing 8.5% of all vans sold . Most vans were plug-in hybrids, accounting for almost all EU plug-in van sales. After the expiration of the government incentives, sales drop to about 1,300 all-electric cars (BEV) in 2016, and fell further in 2017 to almost 700 pure electric cars. In 2018, the registration of new BEV grew up to 1559 units and in the first half of 2019, 2595 units were already sold.

Denmark's sales surged before the expiration of its purchase incentives, and plunged thereafter, its plug-in market penetration plunge to 0.1% as of July 2017. In April 2017 the government announced a partial resumption of the credit, while adding a new fund for fuel cell vehicles.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	4584	1353	720	1559	2595
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.3%	0.7%	2.1%

As of December 2017, the total stock of registered all-electric cars amounted to 8,746 units, slightly up from 8,643 electric cars in 2016. Sales of plug-in hybrids grew from 5 sold in 2013 to 572 in 2016, and 621 units in 2017.

Estonia

Two Mitsubishi i-MiEVs in Estonia. The majority of electric cars in Estonia are i-MiEVs.

As of February 2015, 1,188 plug-in vehicles were registered.

Estonia was the first country to deploy an EV charging network with nationwide coverage, with fast chargers available along highways at a maximum distance of 40 to 60 km (25 to 37 mi). As of December 2012, the nationwide network consisted of 165 fast chargers.

In 2011, the government confirmed the sale to Mitsubishi of 10 million carbon dioxide credits in exchange for 507 i-MiEV electric cars. The deal included funding 250 fast charging stations and subsidies for the first 500 private buyers of any electric approved by the EU. The first 50 i-MiEVs were delivered in October 2011, for use by municipal social workers.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 34 in 2015 to 85 in 2018, after a stagnation in 2016 and 2017. At the first half of 2019, 42 new BEV were sold, representing 0.2% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	34	35	26	85	42
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.1%	0.3%	0.2%

Estonia's figures are low compared to other advanced economies, attributed to lack of government incentives after the carbon credit scheme was exhausted.

Ecuador

The offer and demand for electric vehicles in the South American nation is reduced. Electric charging stations are currently being built in Guayaquil, Quito, Cuenca, and Loja. In Ecuador, all electric vehicles are exempt from customs duties and taxes starting in June 2019. The electric vehicle offer in the country is set to increase. The Ecuadorean government has been incentivizing the us of electric vehicles with tax cuts. However, both the offer and demand remained short, encouraging the government to eliminate all duties to electric vehicles.

European Union overview

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Europe

Evolution of annual registrations of plug-in electric passenger cars in Europe between 2011 and 2019.

Europe had more than two million plug-in electric passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in circulation at the end of April 2020. As of December 2019, Europe accounted for 25% of the global stock, the second largest stock after China. Europe also has the second largest electric light commercial vehicle stock, with over 115,000 units, 31% of the global stock in 2019.

The plug-in car segment had a market share of 1.3% of new car registrations in 2016, and rose to 3.6% in 2019. The largest country markets in the region are Norway, the UK, Germany, France, and the Netherlands.

In all the European Union, sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 58,975 in 2015 to 150,056 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 125,378 new BEV were sold, representing 1.5% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year for EU

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	58975	63136	97476	150056	125378
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.6%	1.0%	1.5%

When including EFTA, sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 88,011 in 2015 to 201,439 in 2018. Norway represents the most contribution of the new BEV registrations in EFTA. In 2017, the total number of new BEV registrations passed 100,000 vehicles

Total of new battery electric cars registered per year for EU + EFTA

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Total new all-electric passenger car registrations	88,201	90,996	135,775	199,662	359,796
% of total new registrations	N/A	N/A	N/A	1.3%	2.3%

Finland

As of October 2016, about 2,250 EVs were registered. Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 243 in 2015 to 776 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 995 new BEV were sold, representing 1.7% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	243	222	502	776	995
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.4%	0.6%	1.7%

In November 2016, the government set the goal of 250,000 plug-in cars and 50,000 biogas cars on the road by 2030. These goals are part of the Finnish government efforts to comply with the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Basic charging infrastructure is available all over Finland, used for winter engine pre-warming. Because of its climate – cold winters and warm summers – Finland is considered a convenient "test laboratory" for electric cars.

Many companies in Finland are involved in next-generation vehicle manufacturing, including Valmet Automotive, Fortum (concept cars and infrastructure), Vacon (electric motor technology production), Ensto (production of charging units), Elcat (electric vehicle production since the 1980s), Raceabout (specialist electric sport car with very few sales).

Research related to electric cars is in progress at the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Tekes.

Electric car organisations in Finland include the Electric Vehicle Association of Finland and Electric Vehicles Finland. A non-commercial electric car conversion organisation is called Electric Cars - Now! that converts Toyota Corollas into Li-ion battery-powered electric cars.

France

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in France

See also: Government incentives for plug-in vehicles in France

Registration of light-duty plug-in vehicles in France by type of vehicle between 2010 and 2019.

As of February 2020, cumulative registrations of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles in France totaled 305,061 plug-in cars and electric utility vans delivered since 2010, consisting of 240,032 all-electric passenger cars and utility vans, and 65,029 plug-in hybrids. The plug-in passenger car segment achieved a record market share of 1.98% of new car registrations in 2017. France was the largest European market for light-duty electric commercial vehicles or utility vans in 2016. The stock of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles registered in France passed the 100,000 unit milestone in October 2016.

The Renault Zoe has led electric car sales in France since 2013, and is the country's all-time best selling plug-in with more than 100,000 units registered through June 2020.

Plug-in electric car registrations have been led by the Renault Zoe for seven years running, from 2013 to 2019, with sales through June 2020 totaling 102,087 units since 2012. The electric utility van segment has been led by the Renault Kangoo Z.E. with over 21,000 units sold through February 2019.

The registration of new all-electric cars (BEV) increased from 184 units in 2010 to 32,203 units in 2018, 1.4% of the new car registration. During the first half of 2019, 21,024 new BEV were registered, representing 1.8% of the new car sales.

In 2008, France established a bonus-malus system offering a purchase incentive for low emission cars and a penalty fee (malus), for the purchase of high-emission vehicles. In 2015, the government introduced an additional bonus for all-electric car purchasers who scrapped a diesel-powered car in circulation before 1 January 2001. As of September 2016, the scrappage bonus had been granted for more than 10,000 purchases.

Germany

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Germany

Annual registration of plug-in cars in Germany by type of vehicle between 2010 and 2019.

As of December 2019, cumulative registrations in Germany totaled 305,787 plug-in electric passenger cars since 2010, consisting of 168,396 all-electric cars and 137,391 plug-in hybrids. In addition, Germany had a stock of 21,890 light-duty electric commercial vehicles in 2019, the second largest in Europe after France.

As of November 2014, the country had 4,800 public charging stations.

With 108,839 plug-in passenger cars registered in 2019, Germany was the top selling country market in the European continent in 2019, with sales up 60.9% from 2018. The plug-in car segment achieved a market share of 3.10% in 2019.

The Smart electric drive led the plug-in electric car segment in Germany until 2013.

Under its National Platform for Electric Mobility, Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2010 set the goal of putting one million electric vehicles on German roads by 2020. Initially, the government did not provide subsidies in favor of research. The Bundestag passed the Electric Mobility Act in March 2015 that authorized local government to grant non-monetary incentives. The measures privilege battery-powered cars, fuel cell vehicles and some PHEVs, by granting local governments the authority to offer additional incentives.

The introduction of the purchase bonus noticeably impacted sales only in September 2016, when registrations grew to 3,061 units.

An incentive scheme was approved in April 2016 including purchase subsidies, charging stations and another federal government fleet purchases, with a target of 400,000 electric vehicles. Premium cars, such as the Tesla Model S and BMW i8, were not eligible.

As of September 2016, BMW, Citroën, Daimler, Ford, Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Volvo had signed up to participate in the scheme. The online application system to claim the bonus went into effect on 2 July 2016.

Greece

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 35 in 2015 to 88 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 104 new BEVs were sold, representing 0.16% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	35	9	47	88	104
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.05%	0.09%	0.16%

In June 2020, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced the government's plan to support the adoption of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) by individuals and corporations, with the aim for one-in-three new vehicles in Greece to be electric by 2030. The plan includes purchase subsidizing, exemption from the road tax and any parking fees, as well as incentives for setting up charging stations, for pure electric private passenger cars and motorbikes, as well as for pure electric or plug-in hybrid taxis and light commercial vehicles. The government's subsidy covers the purchase of new BEVs and PHEVs with a total of 100 million euros for 18 months in the first phase, which is estimated to cover 25% of the cost of about 14.000 new electric vehicles.

The government will subsidize the purchase of each new electric vehicle, covering 15% of its cost (up to €5.500) for private passenger and light commercial vehicles, 20% of the cost (up to €800) for motorbikes and 25% of the cost (up to €8.000) for taxis. Vehicle owners that will concurrently retire their old vehicle will receive an additional bonus of up to €2.500. Furthermore, expenses for charging the electric car will be exempt from taxable income. The benefit for each new electric car, if combined with the ecological bonus and the relevant tax exemptions, will approach 10.000 euros.

Hong Kong

Main article: Electric vehicles in Hong Kong

As of December 2017, 10,666 plug in vehicles were registered in Hong Kong. March 2017 saw 2,964 EVs registered in one month before first registration tax exemption was repealed. 2,939 of these cars were Tesla Model S and X.

Tesla Roadster charging at Central Star Ferry carpark in Hong Kong.

As of September 2016, 6,298 plug-in vehicles were on the roads in Hong Kong, up from 3,253 in October 2015. The plug-in segment market share achieved 4.8% of new car sales in Hong Kong in 2015.

As of October 2015, more than 1,200 public electric vehicle charging points were available. More than a dozen models were available for retail customers.

Sales of electric cars took off in Hong Kong with the Tesla Model S in 2014. The tax waiver made the Model S competitive in the luxury car segment, at about half the price of other high-end models. According to Tesla, as of September 2016, Hong Kong had the world's highest density of Tesla superchargers, giving most Model S owners a supercharger within a 20-minute drive.

The Government offered purchase incentives to consumers, businesses and service providers were available from 2011 to 2017. The Government further allocated HK$180 million for bus companies to purchase 36 electric buses.

Hungary

In November 2018, 8,482 PEVs were registered in Hungary. The Hungarian government introduced its e-mobility plan in March 2014. The Jedlik plan supported the domestic production of electric vehicles, expanding the necessary infrastructure and promoting the purchase of EVs with public incentives, including 1.5 million HUF, initiated at the end of 2016.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 115 in 2015 to 1300 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 801 new BEV were sold, representing 1.1% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	115	172	749	1300	801
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.6%	1.0%	1.1%

Iceland

The plug-in car segment in Iceland reached 5.37% of all new vehicles registered in 2016, allowing the country to rank second in Europe after Norway that year. Registrations of new plug-in electric cars totaled 2,990 units in 2017, up 157% from the previous year. The segment's market share achieved a record 14%, globally, second only to Norway. The top selling plug-ins in 2017 were the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV with 884 units and the Nissan Leaf with 524. In 2018, 284 new BEV units were sold and 423 in the first half of 2019, representing 5.8% of the overall new cars sales.

The government eliminated VAT (24%) and CO₂-based fees (up to 65%) on new car purchases for EVs.

As of 2017, Orka Náttúrunnar (ON) was working to complete a network of 50 kW CCS Combo/CHAdeMO stations along the Ring Road. Tesla opened its first supercharger in Reykjavík in December 2019, with 4 more planned around Iceland in 2020.

Tesla started delivery in Iceland on 28 February 2020 and was quickly the number 1 new electric car sold in Iceland. As of March 2020 passenger plug-in market share of total new car sales for the year 2020 has reached 55%.

India

Mahindra e2o

As of December 2015, over 6,000 plug-in cars were registered, consisting of 4,350 BEV cars and 1,660 PHEVs. The Indian government has Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) scheme which provides incentives for purchasing electric vehicles. Indian government has reduced GST rate on EVs from 12% to 5% in the Union Budget 2019 to encourage electric vehicles. The Indian government gives an additional tax benefit of Rs 1.5 lakh on the interest paid on loans taken to buy EVs. The EVs in India are exempted from paying road tax for vehicle registration.

Indonesia

The government supported some trial models made by Tucuxi. Conversion of some vehicles to electric drivetrains was introduced during the APEC Meeting in October 2013.

Ireland

Sales of electric cars in Ireland increased more than four times in 2014 from a low base. Then, sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 466 in 2015 to 1233 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 1954 new BEV were sold, representing 2.4% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	466	392	622	1233	1954
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.5%	1.0%	2.4%

The government committed to making 10% of all vehicles by 2020 (a projected 230,000 vehicles). Government officials reached agreements with French car maker Renault and its partner Nissan. As of September 2014, purchase incentives became available.

As of the start of 2020, Electric Vehicles (EVs) was as a proportion of all cars for sale in Ireland very small, which could be seen in a snapshot (7 February 2020) of four different car sales websites (Autotrader.ie, Carsireland.ie, Carzone.ie, and Donedeal.ie) which showed that out of circa 38,000 to 70,000 cars listed for sale, only circa 0.7% to 1.1% were EV's, so in real terms only 431-616 EV cars were advertised for sale in the market.

This very low level of EVs compared poorly to the circa 25,338 to 46,940 diesel cars shown available for sale on the same date, representing a much larger, circa 64-67% of the market at that time.

The Irish Government (to January 2020) had stated an aim to ban the sale of petrol, diesel and hybrid new (‘non-electric’) cars from 2030 (compared to the proposed EU ban by 2040, and the UK's proposed ban on the sale of new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars from 2035 as announced in the first week of February 2020) though car dealers were reported in 2020 to consider the Irish Government's target for one million electric and plug-in hybrid cars to be in use by 2030, as far too ambitious, though Government grants of up to €10,000 also available (as of 2020)(The Irish Times, 7 February 2020). It was also reported (The Irish Times, 7 February 2020) in the Irish newspapers in February 2020 that there were at that time about 1,200 electric car (EV) charging points in Ireland, but that this was compared to Norway, the European leader in EV transition, with approximately 12,000 charging stations for circa 300,000 EVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV).

A compromise in terms of transition and non-electric ban implementation around 2030 maybe for acceptance also of Hybrid cars with smaller conventional petrol engines (regardless of whether the vehicles are ‘Full’ or ‘Mild’ hybrids) of for example at/ less than 1.6litre (1600cc) capacity, and/ or say less circa 100g/km CO2 or less in terms of emissions, or a good fuel efficiency rating (L/100 km ) for Highway/Extra Urban and ‘Combined’ journeys.

Italy

BMW i3 patrol car of the Italian police at Vatican City.

As of December 2015 over 6,100 plug-in cars were registered, consisting of 4,580 BEV cars and 1,550 PHEVs. The top EV in 2015 was the Nissan Leaf (390 units sold). About 10,000 electric vehicles were sold in Italy in 2018, double the 2017 number of about 5,000.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 1442 in 2015 to 4996 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 5040 new BEV were sold, representing 0.5% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	H1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	1442	1373	2022	4996	5040
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.1%	0.3%	0.5%

The government discontinued incentives in 2014 amid a limited public charging infrastructure and tepid reception. Further, many Italian houses were equipped with electric contracts allowing only 3 kW of peak consumption, making home charging of electric cars impractical.

Japan

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Japan

The Nissan Leaf is the top selling plug-in car in Japan ever, with close to 140,000 units sold by February 2020.

As of December 2019, Japan had a stock of plug-in passenger cars of 294,000 units on the road, consisting of 152,320 all-electric cars (51.8%) and 141,680 plug-in hybrids (48.2%). The fleet of electric light commercial vehicles in use totaled 8,720 units in 2019.

Sales totaled 24,690 units in 2016, rose to 54,100 in 2017, and then declined to 49,750 in 2018, and fell to 38,900 in 2019. The segment market share declined from 0.68% in 2014 to 0.59% in 2016, and recovered to 1.1% in 2017, but drop to 0.9% in 2019. The decline in plug-in sales reflects the governmental and domestic carmaker decision to promote hydrogen fuel cell vehicles instead.

In May 2009 the Japanese Diet passed the "Green Vehicle Purchasing Promotion Measure". The program provided purchasing subsidies for cars, mini and keis, trucks and buses, including an extra subsidy for purchases trading in a sufficiently old used car. The program ended on 31 March 2010. The Japanese electric vehicle charging infrastructure climbed from 60 public stations in 2010 to 1,381 in 2012.

Mitsubishi introduced multiple plug-in vehicles: the Mitsubishi i MiEV in 2009, the Mitsubishi Minicab MiEV in 2011, a truck version of the Minicab MiEV and the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV in 2013. The Nissan Leaf launched in 2010. The Toyota Prius PHEV was released in January 2012.

The Leaf is Japan's all-time best-selling plug-in car, with about 140,000 units delivered by February 2020. Prius PHEV sales since inception totaled about 61,200 units up to December 2018. As of March 2018, the Outlander PHEV had sold 42,451 units. Sales of the Outlander PHEV fell sharply from April 2016 as a result of Mitsubishi's fuel economy scandal.

Kosovo

There have not been much effort in by Kosovo of using Plug-in electric vehicles. However ProCredit Bank, Kosova, became the first institution in Kosovo to use electric vehicles, by buying 10 new Mitsubishi i-MiEV vehicles. In 2017, six teens in the city Gjakova, from BONEVET makerspace, became the first European teenager group to build an electric car out of a Renault Twingo, transforming it from a petrol-fuelled car to a fully functional electric car.

Latvia

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 17 in 2015 to 73 in 2018. At the first quarter of 2019, 46 new BEV were sold, representing 0.4% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	17	25	22	73	46
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.1%	0.4%	0.4%

Lithuania

As of 1 July 2018, 806 EVs were registered. Registrations were led by Nissan (50%). Also 11198 hybrids registered in Lithuania by 1 July 2018. Registrations were led by Toyota (64%).

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 37 in 2015 to 143 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 75 new BEV were sold, representing 0.3% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	37	64	52	143	75
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.2%	0.4%	0.3%

Mexico

A Nissan Leaf charging at a public charge station in Colonia Condesa, Mexico City.

In October 2009 Nissan reached an agreement with the Mexico City government, purchasing 500 Leafs for use of government and corporate fleets. In exchange, recharging infrastructure was to be deployed by the city government. The first 100 Leafs (destined for the taxi fleet) were delivered in 2011.

As of February 2013, about 70 Leafs were deployed as taxis, 50 in Aguascalientes and 20 in Mexico City.

Retail Leaf sales began in June 2014. Retail deliveries of the BMW i3 began 2014.

The second generation Volt and Tesla Model S began in 2015.

As of October 2012, no government purchase incentives were available. However, electric cars are exempted from Mexico City's driving restriction scheme.

Netherlands

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in the Netherlands

Number of total registered plug-in electric vehicles on the road in the Netherlands from 2011 to 2019.

As of 31 March 2020, there were 218,501 highway-legal light-duty plug-in electric vehicles registered in the Netherlands, consisting of 116,148 pure electric cars, 97,553 range-extended and plug-in hybrids, and 4,800 all-electric light utility vans. The plug-in market share declined from 9.9% in 2015, to 6.7% in 2016, and fell to 2.6% in 2017.

A Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV in Amsterdam.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	3989	4021	9405	26533	20069
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	2.3%	6.0%	8.8%

The Tesla Model S, released in the Dutch market in September 2013, is the country's top selling BEV car ever.

From 1 January 2016, all-electric vehicles continue to pay a 4% registration fee, but for a plug-in hybrids the fee rises from 7% to 15% if its CO₂ emissions do not exceed 50 g/km. The rate for a conventional internal combustion car is 25% of its book value.

The Dutch government set a target of 15,000 electric vehicles in 2015, 200,000 in 2020 and 1 million in 2025. The government exempted selected vehicles from registration fee and road taxes. The exemption from the registration tax ended in 2013. Battery electric vehicles have special access to parking spaces in Amsterdam, queues for which can otherwise reach up to 10 years. Free charging is offered in public parking spaces.

Other factors contributing to the rapid adoption of plug-in electric vehicles are the Netherlands' small size, which reduces range anxiety; a long tradition of environmental activism; high gasoline prices (US$8.50 per gallon as of January 2013); and some EV leasing programs that provide free or discounted gasoline-powered vehicles for covering long distances.

New Zealand

Light EV fleet size in New Zealand

Type	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
New PHEVs	11	224	451	779	1,199	1,939	2,238
New BEVs	101	140	207	588	1,271	2,009	2,322
Used PHEVs	0	2	15	116	456	896	1,071
Used BEVs	44	114	310	998	3,211	6,783	7,894
Total EVs	156	480	983	2,481	6,137	11,627	13,525

As of May 2019, about 13,500 light-duty EVs were registered. The majority of the fleet (9,000) consists of used imports from Japan and the UK. The most popular model by far is the Nissan Leaf, with 7,300 registered.

The New Zealand Government launched an Electric Vehicle Programme in May 2016, in order to encourage EV uptake. Electric vehicles in New Zealand are exempt from road user charges until at least 31 December 2021, and pay the lower petrol rates for ACC levies on motor vehicle licensing.

Norway

Registration of EVs in Norway by year between 2004 and 2019. Includes PHEVs and BEV cars and vans. Used imports are included.

Distribution of the Norwegian stock of passenger cars by type of fuel or powertrain at the end 2019.

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Norway

As of 31 March 2020, the stock of light-duty plug-in electric vehicles registered in Norway totaled 390,367 units in use, consisting of 268,962 all-electric passenger cars and vans, and 121,405 plug-in hybrids, including a significant number of used imports from neighboring countries. Norway's fleet of electric cars is one of the world's cleanest, because 99% of its power comes from hydropower (see also renewable energy in Norway). Norway has the world's largest EV ownership per capita, with 21.5 plug-ins per 1,000 people as of July 2016.

The plug-in electric passenger car segment captured a market share of 29.1% in 2016, rose to 39.2% in 2017, and achieved a 49.1% in 2018, and 55.9% in 2019, meaning that every second new passenger car sold in Norway in 2019 was a plug-in electric. In January 2017 the electric-drive segment surpassed combined conventional internal combustion engine sales for the first time ever, achieving a combined market share of 51.4% of new car sales. In October 2018, Norway became the first country where 1 in every 10 passenger cars registered is a plug-in electric vehicle.

For all-battery cars alone, the sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 25,779 in 2015 to 46,092 in 2018. During 2019, 60,316 new passenger BEV were sold, representing 42.4% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric passenger cars registered per year*

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Total new BEV registrations	25,788	24,245	33,080	46,143	60,345
% of total new registrations	17.1%	15.7%	20.9%	31.2%	42.4%

*Note: these figures are for registrations of new zero-emission passenger cars (ZEVs) so it includes a few FCVs

Norway was the first country in the world to have all-electric cars ranking as the best selling passenger car model of the year, and for two consecutive years. First, the Nissan Leaf, with 12,303 units registered in 2018, ended as the country's best selling new passenger car model, marking the first time an electric car tops annual sales of the passenger car segment. Thereafter, the Tesla Model 3 topped annual passengar car sales in 2019 with 15,683 units registered. Also, in March 2019, the Model 3, with over 5,300 units delivered, set the all-time record for monthly sales of a single passenger car model. Another record was set in 2018 and repeated in 2019, as the top 5 best selling passenger car models in both years were all plug-in electric models.

As of March 2018, the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV remained as the top selling plug-in hybrid with 14,196 new units sold. The Nissan Leaf continued to be the most popular model in the plug-in segment with 50,000 units registered by early December 2018, including used imports from neighboring countries, and representing 25% of total all-electric car registrations in Norway.

Government incentives

The Norwegian government set a series of incentives to promote the adoption of zero emission vehicles (ZEVs). Electric vehicles are exempt from all non-recurring vehicle fees, making electric cars price competitive with conventional cars. BEVs are exempt from the annual road tax, public parking fees and toll payments (including domestic ferries), as well as given access to bus lanes. Plug-in hybrids have a smaller market share than ZEVs because they are not eligible for the same incentives. In 2013 the government reduced taxes for to improve PHEV sales.

The initial 50,000 vehicle target was reached on 20 April 2015 at a cost of up to 4 billion krone (around US$640 million). The Government decided to continue the incentives through 2017, although the Parliament phased out some of the incentives. As of January 2018, 24 out of 58 major municipalities kept the free parking for EVs. Among the 34 municipalities that terminated the benefit, six kept different variants of partial free parking.

In 2016, the government proposed its National Transport Plan 2018-2029 (NTP) with the goal that all new cars, buses and light commercial vehicles in 2025 should be zero emission vehicles. By 2030, heavy-duty vans, 75% of new long-distance buses, and 50% of new trucks must be zero emission vehicles.

Pakistan

Main article: Electric vehicle industry in Pakistan

Dynasty IT was bought by Karakoram Motors of Pakistan, and now it is manufactured in Pakistan.

Pakistan already has a significant market for hybrid vehicles with the Honda Vezel, Toyota Prius, Toyota Aqua, and other models seen on the roads. The Automotive Development Policy (2016-2021) and the launch of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are encouraging foreign investments for the new automobile brands to enter Pakistani market, while the leading manufacturers in the automobile industry in Pakistan are now introducing EV models with a wide range of prices which target consumers of diverse income groups. Several members of the international automobile industry including South Korea, China, and Japan also believe that Pakistan has a

In January 2017, Dewan Motors with BMW inaugurated Pakistan's first public charging station for electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in Emporium Mall, Lahore. Dewan Motors had installed another station for plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles at Dolmen Mall in Karachi in February 2017. Rahmat Group has acquired 25 acres of land to establish Electrical Complex at Nooriabad to produce electric vehicles. At the initial stage, the group will produce electric buses to tap the transport market, and in the second phase, a manufacturing plant would be established at the complex to produce electric cars and two-wheelers.

On 2017, Jolta International had created the first locally manufactured electric motorcycle. The company is based just outside of Bahria Town Rawalpindi, and showcased three Jolta Chargeable Electrical Motorcycles in Gwadar.

Leading automobile manufacturers, including Super Power Motorcycles, have started introducing EV models. Neon, a Pakistan-based motorcycle assembler, has introduced an all electric Neon M3 motorbike in Pakistan. The macho looking sports bike comes with emission free and noiseless features. Neon also assembles Electric scooters in Pakistan.

Philippines

The country's first electric was launched at Silliman University by Insular Technologies in August 2007. In some major cities such as Makati, electric Jeepneys are used as well as electric tricycles (rickshaws). The Eagle G-Car is a Philippine BEV car (at a cost as low as $3,000-$6,000). E-Jeepneys were a venture of Renewable Independent Power Producer Inc., which sprang from Greenpeace and other groups, and Solarco, which in turn is a part of GRIPP.

During a demonstration at Nanyang Technological University on 7 February 2018, Nissan Philippines' president and managing director Ramesh Narasimhan has announced that they would like to bring the Leaf to the Filipino market.

Poland

A Mitsubishi i-MiEV charging at a charging station.

In 2009, Poland began developing charging station infrastructure in Gdańsk, Katowice, Kraków, Mielec and Warsaw with EU funds. In November 2017 an electric car sharing network opened in Wrocław. The fleet is based on 2013 model of Nissan Leaf.

The biggest organization in Poland in the area of electric vehicles is Klaster Green Stream. The Polish company 3xE - samochody elektryczne (3xE - electric cars) offer electric vehicle conversions of small city cars such as the Smart ForTwo, Citroën C1, Fiat Panda, Peugeot 107, Audi A2. The converted cars have a range of about 100 km (60 mi), using lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO
₄) batteries and brushless DC electric motors.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 70 in 2015 to 620 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 947 new BEV were sold, representing 0.3% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	70	112	435	620	947
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.09%	0.12%	0.30%

Portugal

In 2015, the stock of EVs reached about 2,000, consisting of 1,280 BEV cars and 720 PHEVs. EV sales totaled 1,305 units in 2015, up 260% from 2014. The top selling model was the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV (229).

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 645 in 2015 to 4073 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 3905 new BEV were sold, representing 3.0% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	645	764	1640	4073	3905
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.7%	1.8%	3.0%

In 2009, Portugal worked with Renault and Nissan to create a national charging network.

In 2010, the government offered purchase incentives for the first 5,000 EVs and a separate scrappage incentive. EVs were exempted from the vehicle registration tax. These incentives were discontinued at the end of 2011.

Romania

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 24 in 2015 to 605 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 456 new BEV were sold, representing 0.6% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	24	74	188	605	456
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.2%	0.5%	0.6%

As of June 2019, over 3,000 EVs were registered. Registrations were led by the Renault Zoe. The government offered purchase incentives of 4200 euro (20000 RON) for a PHEV and 8400 euro (40000 RON) for BEV, although yearly capped (but not reached) and limited in time due to a yearly approval.

Russia

As of July 2016, 722 EVs were registered. Registrations were led by the Mitsubishi i-MiEV.

Serbia

As of September 2019, 148 EVs were registered. Serbia has a network of over 30 charing stations (including 5 that are solar powered & 2 Tesla Super Chargers) with more planned for consutruction. In 2020, Serbia introduced new purchase & tax incentives for EVs & Hybrids offering up to 5000 euros to help accelerate electrification. Serbia is also home to about 10% of global Lithium reserves, the mining & processing of which will be done in partnership with Rio Tinto who have committed $1.5 billion of investment in the country. The government is currently looking to utilize this resource to produce a major EV battery plant & Rio Tinto is helping locate a strategic partner for this venture.

Singapore

As of October 2016, 129 EVs were registered with the BMW i3 and i8 range being the highest selling brand. Adoption was slowed by high purchase prices, lack of public charging infrastructure and unclear national policies. As of October 2016, 74 public charging stations were operating.

The government offered purchase incentives, although the country's taxation scheme made EVs more expensive than a conventional car. EVs face a carbon surcharge and a scrap rebate, along with the annual road tax.

In February 2017, Singapore had the largest fleet of electric taxis in southeast Asia, with 100 vehicles from BYD.

By December 2018, there were 466 fully electric cars registered in Singapore, 0.08% of the total, and 357 plug-in hybrids, 0.06%.

Slovakia

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 52 in 2015 to 309 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 95 new BEV were sold, representing 0.2% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	52	59	229	309	95
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.2%	0.3%	0.2%

Slovenia

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 288 in 2017 to 467 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 264 new BEV were sold, representing 0.7% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	288	467	264
% of total new registrations	0.4%	0.6%	0.7%

South Africa

As of December 2015, about 290 plug-in cars were registered, all in 2015. The Nissan Leaf was introduced in October 2013. As of January 2018, this number has increased to 375, 0.2% of all registered vehicles.

GridCars is a Pretoria-based company promoting Commuter Cars, based on the TREV from Australia. The concept is to build ultra-light EVs, lessening demand on battery requirements, and making the vehicle more affordable. The Joule, designed by Cape Town-based failed start-up Optimal Energy, was announced at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, with a maximum range of 300 km (190 mi).

The country has a 45% tax on electric vehicles which discourages their import. New internal combustion engine vehicles face a surcharge based on engine capacity.

South Korea

Registration of highway-capable plug-in cars by model in South Korea between 2012 and 2013

Model	Total Sales 2012–2013	Sales 2013	Sales 2012
Kia Ray EV	929	398	531
Samsung SM3 Z.E.	294	277	17
Chevrolet Spark EV	40	40
Total registrations	1,263	715	548

As of October 2016, about 7,200 plug-in cars had been sold. 2,896 EVs were sold during the first ten months of 2016, up 12% year-on-year.

As of 2014, all electric models on sale were manufactured by local firms. The top selling models during 2015 were the Kia Soul EV (657) and the Samsung SM3 Z.E. (640). The Hyundai Ioniq Electric was released in July 2016.

The government offers a purchase subsidy for electric cars. Starting in 2016, the EV purchase tax surcharge was reduced, although EV drivers see various fees.

By 2018 there were a total of 59,600 electric cars on Korean streets. Nearly 34,000 electric vehicles have been sold in 2018 in Korea. It shows a steep increase. The market share of battery-electric and plugin-electric vehicles in Korea is at 2.21%. And there were over 9,000 public chargers in Korea.

Spain

EV registrations in Spain by year between 2010 and 2017.

The stock of plug-in cars reached almost 6,000 plug-in as of 2015, consisting of 4,460 BEV cars and 1,490 PHEVs. The top selling model in 2015 was the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV (389).

3,129 EVs were sold in Spain during the first three quarters of 2016. Sales continued to grow at an accelerated pace, up 79% from the same period in 2015.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 1342 in 2015 to 5984 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 5452 new BEV were sold, representing 0.8% of the overall sales. For the whole 2019, the sales came to 1.4% of all new registrations.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	1342	2005	3920	5984	5452
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	0.3%	0.5%	0.8%

In 2011 the national government initiated EV purchase incentives. Aragón, Asturias, Baleares, Madrid, Navarra, Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha, Murcia, Castile and León offered additional incentives.

Sri Lanka

As of September 2015, 2,072 electric cars had been registered, led by the Nissan Leaf. EV sales experienced a record month in September 2015 with 471 units registered, up from only 15 in September 2014.

Sales of the Nissan Leaf began in 2013.

No government incentives promote EVs. Electric vehicle tax increased from 5% to 50% through the new government's Interim Budget.

Sweden

EV registrations in Sweden by year between 2011 and 2019.

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in Sweden

As of December 2019, a total of 121,626 light-duty plug-in electric vehicles have been registered since 2011, consisting of 82,780 plug-in hybrids, 34,902 all-electric car and 3,944 all-electric commercial vans. The market is dominated by plug-in hybrids, representing 74.9% of plug-in car registrations through 2017, and slightly declined to 70.3% through 2019. Passenger plug-ins increased their market share from 3.5% in 2016 to 5.2% in 2017, 8.2% in 2018, and achieved a record of 11.3% in 2019.

As of December 2017, the Outlander PHEV continues to rank as the all-time top selling plug-in electric car with 9,957 units registered. As of December 2016, the Renault Kangoo Z.E. continued as the all-time the leader in the commercial utility EV segment with 1,024 units.

Effective January 2012 Sweden offered subsidies for the purchase and operation of 5,000 electric cars and other "super green cars" with low/no carbon emissions. The program was belatedly renewed through 2015 and again for 2016 with the addition of subsidies for electric buses.

Switzerland

Top 10 electric vehicles in Switzerland, January to May 2019

	Model	Pieces
1	Tesla Model 3	1991
2	Renault ZOE	646
3	BMW i3	394
4	Jaguar i-Pace	247
5	Nissan Leaf	219
6	Tesla Model S	189
7	Audi e-tron	174
8	Tesla Model X	150
9	Hyundai Ioniq	98
10	Mitsubishi i-MiEV	31

As of April 2016, over 12,000 EVs had been registered since 2012.

Sales of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) rose from 3257 in 2015 to 5139 in 2018. At the first half of 2019, 5938 new BEV were sold, representing 3.8% of the overall sales.

Total of new battery electric vehicles registered per year

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	SEM 1 2019
Total new BEV registrations	3257	3295	4775	5139	5938
% of total new registrations	not available	not available	1.5%	1.7%	3.8%

Deliveries of the Mitsubishi i MiEV. the Nissan Leaf were launched in 2011.

The government offers no subsidies or incentives for purchasing EVs. Cantons can propose special discounts on annual taxes depending on the car's efficiency label and range from 100% rebate (e.g. Solothurn) to 0%.

Taiwan

Taiwan has a plan to ban all non-electric vehicles in the coming decades, due to concerns over air quality. The plan calls for all new government vehicles and public buses to be electric by 2030, ban sales of nonelectric motorcycles by 2035, and ban sales of nonelectric four-wheel vehicles by 2040.

In 2014 a local taxi association purchased over 1,500 electric minivans.

Ukraine

Nissan Leaf in Kharkiv—EcoTaxi, 2016

As of 1 January 2019, a total of 19,884 plug-in cars and conventional hybrids are registered in Ukraine, consisting of 10,714 plug-ins and 9,170 hybrids. Over the year 2018, the number of electric vehicles increased by 73% (5,557 cars). The EV market share of total new and used cars first registered during 2018 was 2.8% based on 5,557 out of a total of 198,600 first registered cars.

The Ukrainian Government passed a 2019 budget law which extended existing 2018 tax privileges for plug-in cars until 2023. Both new and second hand plug-in BEVs ( without gasoline range extenders) may be imported free of VAT, import duty and excise duty. As a consequence of the law, new cars like for example the Tesla Model 3 can be purchased for a lower price than in any other country in Europe. This has stimulated demand in 2018 and the trend will most likely continue through 2019.

In November 2018 EV imports were almost 250% those of November 2017.

7,542 vehicles were registered in this country over 2019. The market of commercial electric vehicles grew even more - by one and a half times.The most popular electric vehicle in Ukraine is NISSAN Leaf. Last year, 3,217 vehicles of this particular model joined the car pool in this country. Tesla Model S comes second, with 623 car owners in Ukraine. Third place belongs to VOLKSWAGEN e-Golf, with 360 Ukrainians making their choice in its favor.

United Kingdom

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in the United Kingdom

Annual registration of plug-in electric cars in the UK between 2011 and 2019.

The REVAi/G-Wiz i electric car charging at an on-street station in London.

About 298,000 light-duty plug-in electric vehicles had been registered in the UK up until April 2020, including about 8,800 plug-in commercial vans.

As of 18 January 2018, the UK had 19,108 public charging points at 6,703 locations, of which 4,391 were rapid charging points at 1,332 locations.

A surge in plug-in car sales took place beginning in 2014. Total registrations went from 3,586 in 2013, to 37,092 in 2016, and rose to 59,911 in 2018. The market share of the plug-in segment went from 0.16% in 2013 to 0.59% in 2014, and achieved 2.6% in 2018.

As of September 2018, the Mitsubishi Outlander P-HEV is the all-time top selling plug-in car in the UK almost 37,000 units registered, followed by the all-electric Nissan Leaf nearly 24,000 units.

Government incentives

See also: Plug-in Car Grant

The government offered purchase incentives via the Plug-in Car Grant program beginning in 2011. The program was extended to include vans in February 2012 and in October 2016 to include large electric trucks. As of September 2018, a total of 176,962 eligible cars have benefited with the subsidy since the launch of the Plug-in Car Grant in 2011, and, as of September 2018, the number of claims made through the Plug-in Van Grant scheme totaled 5,218 units since the launch of the programme in 2012. In April 2014 and December 2015, the government extended the program with modifications. Eligible ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) included hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

Separately, the government subsidized homeowners to install charge points at home via the "Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme". All-electric vehicles and eligible plug-in hybrids qualify for a 100% discount from the London congestion charge. However, effective from 8 April 2019, the ULED scheme will be replaced with the Cleaner Vehicle Discount, which restrict the discount only to vehicles which are Euro 6, emit up to 75g/km of CO₂ and have a minimum 20-mile (32 km) zero-emission range. A further phase from October 2021 will mean that only zero-emission vehicles (battery electric vehicle and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles) will qualify for the discount, which will be phased out completely from December 2025.

United States

Main article: Plug-in electric vehicles in the United States

See also: Plug-in electric vehicles in California

U.S. annual sales of plug-in passenger cars between December 2010 and 2019.

As of December 2019, cumulative sales of highway legal plug-in electric cars in the U.S. totaled 1.4 million units since 2010. California is the largest plug-in regional market in the country, with 668,827 plug-in cars sold up until 2019, almost half of national sales. The other nine states that follow California Air Resources Board's Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) regulations accounted for another 10% of the American stock.

The Tesla Model S (front) was the U.S. best selling plug-in car from 2015 to 2017, and the Tesla Model 3 (back) led sales in 2018 and 2019.

A total 157,181 plug-in cars were sold nationwide in 2016, sales rose to 199,818 in 2017, and achieved a record sales volume of 361,307 units in 2018. Sales declined to 329,528 units in 2019.

The plug-in segment had a market share of 1.13% in 2017, up from 0.90% in 2016, then rose to 2.1% in 2018, but slightly declined to 1.9% in 2019.

As of December 2018, the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid was the all-time best selling plug-in electric car with 152,144 units of both generations. The Model S was the best selling plug-in car in the U.S. for three consecutive years, from 2015 to 2017, and the Model 3 topped sales in 2018 and 2019. In addition, the Model 3 surpassed in 2019 the discontinued Chevrolet Volt to become the all-time best selling plug-in car in U.S. history, with an estimated 300,471 units delivered since inception, followed by the Tesla Model S all-electric car with about 157,992, and the Chevrolet Volt with 157,054.

The federal tax credit for new plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) is worth between US$2,500 and US$7,500 depending on battery capacity. Several states have established additional incentives.

See also

• Phase-out of fossil fuel vehicles
• Government incentives for plug-in electric vehicles
• List of modern production plug-in electric vehicles
• Neighborhood Electric Vehicle
• Plug-in electric vehicles in Europe
• List of renewable energy topics by country

External links

• Akaki Mamaladze on production of first electric cars in Caucasus: "Our childhood dreams come true" — Interview of A.Mamaladze, director of AIProduction, for Caucasian Journal
• Driving Electrification - A Global Comparison of Fiscal Incentive Policy for Electric Vehicles, International Council on Clean Transportation, May 2014
• Global EV Outlook 2013 - Understanding the Electric Vehicle Landscape to 2020, International Energy Agency (IEA), April 2013
• Hybrid and Electric Vehicles - The Electric Drive Gains Traction (See section C, overview by country), IA-HEV, International Energy Agency, May 2013
• Modernizing vehicle regulations for electrification, International Council on Clean Transportation, October 2018.
• Plug-in Vehicles: A Case Study of Seven Markets (Norway, Netherlands, California, United States, France, Japan, and Germany), UC Davis, October 2014.
• Shades of Green - Electric Cars' Carbon Emissions Around the Globe, Shrink that Footprint, February 2013.
• permanent dead link‍] The Norwegian EV success continues, Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association, June 2016.