Market: One in five new cars is a pure electric vehicle
TWO OUT OF TEN In Switzerland and Liechtenstein, almost one in five new cars sold is a pure battery electric model. BEV growth in our country is thus 53 percent in the third quarter of the current year.
Sales growth of purely electric vehicles continues to accelerate in Switzerland. This is shown by the Electric Vehicle Sales Review study by PwC Autofacts, which evaluated new registration figures in 20 markets worldwide. According to the study, 53 percent more BEVs hit the roads in Switzerland in the third quarter of this year than in the same quarter last year. In the first nine months of the year, the BEV market share is just under 20 percent.
Weakness sales in the south
BEV growth is expected to continue in the coming year. The study forecasts growth of 27 percent for the USA, 34 percent for China and 43 percent for the five core European markets of Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the UK.
Although this puts Europe in the lead, a north-south divide is emerging within the continent. Electric cars have now broken through the 16 percent market share barrier in Germany, France, the UK and Switzerland, which is considered a barrier to entry into the mainstream market. Spain, with six percent, and Italy, with four percent, on the other hand, remain in the single digits in terms of market penetration, putting climate targets at risk.
Plug-in hybrids back on trend
In the battle for market share, plug-in hybrids could also play a stronger role again in the medium term. Such concepts celebrated a comeback in five core markets in the third quarter of this year - and outperformed pure electric vehicles in France, Italy, the UK, China and the USA in terms of growth rates. In Switzerland, too, PHEV sales increased by 32 percent compared with the prior-year quarter, but lagged behind BEV growth rates.
