- The record sales figures, contained in the International Energy Agency’s Global EV Outlook to 2023, continue a trend of sustained growth for the industry.
- “Sales of electric cars – including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) – topped 10 million last year, up 55% from 2021,” says the report from the IEA.
- The Paris-based organization says more than 26 million electric cars were on the world’s roads by 2022, a 60 percent increase from 2021.
Tesla electric vehicles photographed in China. The world’s second largest economy is a major player when it comes to electric vehicle sales.
Vcg | China Visual Group | Getty Images
Sales of electric cars surged to more than 10 million last year, with China accounting for about 60 percent of the market, according to an International Energy Agency report released Wednesday.
The record sales figures, contained in the IEA’s Global EV Outlook to 2023, continue a trend of sustained growth for the industry.
“Sales of electric cars – including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) – topped 10 million last year, up 55% from 2021,” the report said of the IEA.
“This number, 10 million electric vehicle sales worldwide, exceeds the total number of cars sold in the entire European Union (about 9.5 million vehicles) and is almost half of the total number of cars sold in the China in 2022,” he added.
The IEA defined ‘sales’ in its report as ‘an estimate of the number of new vehicles hitting the roads’.
In total, it said more than 26 million electric cars were on the world’s roads by 2022, a 60 percent increase from 2021.
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, have an internal combustion engine and a battery-powered electric motor.
Some see them as an important tool in the transition to low- and zero-emission forms of transportation. Others, including organizations such as Greenpeace UK, take a dim view.
Looking ahead, the Paris-based IEA, seen by many as an authoritative voice on the energy transition, said it estimated global sales to reach nearly 14 million by 2023.
“This explosive growth means that the share of electric cars in the global car market has increased from around 4% in 2020 to 14% in 2022 and is expected to increase further to 18% this year, according to the latest projections from the IEA”, a statement accompanies. the report pointed out.
The dominant Chinese market
The IEA described China as “the leader” when it came to electric car sales. He added that more than 50% of electric cars on the road can now be found in the world’s second-largest economy.
“In Europe, the second largest market, sales of electric cars increased by more than 15% by 2022, meaning that more than one in five cars sold was electric,” the IEA said, and added that electric car sales in the United States had increased by 55% by 2022. 2022.
“Electric vehicles are one of the driving forces of the rapidly emerging new global energy economy and are driving a historic transformation of the automotive manufacturing industry worldwide,” said Fatih Birol, executive director of the IEA.
“The trends we are witnessing have important implications for global oil demand,” he added.
“The internal combustion engine has been unrivaled for more than a century, but electric vehicles are changing the status quo.”
“By 2030 they will avoid the need for at least 5 million barrels of oil per day. Cars are just the first wave – electric buses and trucks will soon follow.”
Unlocking India’s potential
While China, Europe and the United States are big players when it comes to electric cars, the IEA noted that other parts of the world were also showing “promising signs.”
“Sales of electric cars are generally low outside the main markets, but 2022 was a year of growth in India, Thailand and Indonesia,” he said. “Together, sales of electric cars in these countries will more than triple by 2021, reaching 80,000.”
India was seeing a “surge” in both electrical and component manufacturing, the report said on Wednesday. This had been supported by a $3.2 billion incentive program from the Indian government, which in turn had resulted in an investment of $8.3 billion.
Challenges ahead
Recent years have seen several major economies unveil plans to increase the number of electric vehicles on their roads.
The UK, for example, wants to stop selling new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030 and will require all new cars and vans to have zero tailpipe emissions from 2035.
The European Union, which the UK left on 31 January 2020, is also looking to reduce road transport emissions.
And in the United States, California, America’s most populous state, bans the sale of new gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035.
While there is enthusiasm for the potential of low- and zero-emission vehicles, the shift away from fossil fuel-powered cars will not always be smooth.
There are concerns, for example, that the lower noise levels of electric vehicles could pose a challenge for the visually impaired. Also, talk of a skills gap is sparking discussions about cost and safety, while ensuring charging infrastructure is accessible to all is another area to consider.
