London (Business Emerge), July 25: The landscape of electric vehicle (EV) registrations in Europe presents a varied picture, with a notable overall decline in the EU. In June, registrations of battery-electric cars fell by 1% to 156,408 units, as reported by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). This decrease in market share, from 15.1% to 14.4%, highlights a shift despite significant annual increases in several nations.
Among the countries with substantial growth, Croatia led with a dramatic rise of 161.4%, Czechia followed with an increase of 140.8%, and Hungary saw an uplift of 123.8%. Specifically, these countries recorded 298, 1,524, and 864 new battery-electric vehicles, respectively, in June.
In terms of raw numbers, Germany topped the list with 43,412 new registrations, trailed by France with 29,837, and Belgium with 13,714. The UK, while outside the EU, registered 34,034 new electric vehicles during the same period.
Conversely, several countries experienced considerable declines. Ireland saw the largest drop at 52.2%, followed by Romania at 45.3%, Latvia at 42.5%, and Lithuania at 42.0%. Notably, Iceland outside the EU recorded a significant reduction of 76.4%.
Among other notable changes, Belgium experienced a robust increase of 50.4%, while Italy saw a rise of 117.4%. Germany, however, reported a decrease of 18.1%, with the Netherlands and France also showing declines of 15% and 10.3%, respectively.
Lucien Mathieu, cars director at Transport & Environment (T&E), commented on Germany’s struggles, describing it as “the sick man of Europe” in terms of electric car adoption. He emphasized that markets with consistent incentives for EVs are currently benefiting the most.
Germany’s recent policy shift, ending subsidies for electric vehicles as part of the 2024 budget deal, has contributed to this downturn. Meanwhile, the market for petrol cars remained relatively stable, with a slight overall decline of 0.7%. France and Spain saw reductions in petrol car registrations, while Germany and Italy experienced growth. Petrol vehicles now account for 34.4% of the market, down from 36.2% in June of the previous year.
In the broader automotive market, Volkswagen Group maintained its dominance with a 25.8% share of monthly sales, followed by Stellantis at 15.7% and Renault Group at 10.9%.