Up to 300% growth in Electric Car Registrations in the UK alone.
Europe has positively embraced the electric car market with a marked 36.6% growth in registrations his year. The United Kingdom leads the pack in the European Union markets with an undeniably impressive growth of 300%. Up in line is Germany and France with 70% and 30% growth respectively. The hybrid cars have also received an equal growth curve selling 36,836 vehicles in 2014 while the all-electric vehicles registered 38,495 sales. While there is no conclusive data from the United States, it is estimated that 119,710 cars were sold within the country in 2014 which represents 0.7% of the overall market.
Varied electric car market results to government tax incentives
While the growth in the UK is generally viewed as a market response to Government incentives such as tax exemptions and electric and plug-in vehicle premiums of £5,000, other markets in the EU have not responded similarly to government incentives. Netherlands for example have seen a decline of up to 42% in 2014 annual sales despite similar favourabe tax exemptions.
This drop however should not be construed to the mean that the market is not responding well to the technology; it could be a result of the varying maturity in different markets. If this is the case, then the tax incentives will only work to persuade potential interest not necessary core defined buyers. There is also a concern regarding the infrastructure for the electric cars such as a distribution of charging stations as well as a larger driving range.
The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association which has put together these figures is of the opinion that there is more that needs to be done and are advocating for increased subsidies and incentives in the EU to sustain the growth trend in the market.
