Nearly 200,000 electric vehicles (all-electrics + plug-in hybrids) were delivered to buyers in Europe during 2015 — roughly double the figure for 2014 — according to EV-Volumes, an EV sales database and consultancy that has partnered with EV Obsession and CleanTechnica.
Quarter 4 2015 was, in particular, a time of strong sales for the European market (as you can see in the graph just below) — with the markets in Germany, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, and Sweden seeing above-average growth (as compared to earlier quarters and years).
This was, as noted in our coverage of the global sales numbers for 2015, partly due to the fact that electric vehicle (EV) incentives in the Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark were set to be cut beginning in 2016 — spurring those interested in getting EVs to do so before the end of the year.
EV-Volumes provides more information:
2015 finished with 192,500 plug-in vehicles delivered, counting passenger cars and LCVs, nearly double the number of 2014.
…Plug-in hybrids gained more ground again, their share in the mix reached 57% in Q4 (for the reasons above) and 48% for the year, 17% higher than in 2014. Also the total light vehicle market in Europe (w/o Russia) finished strong, with 9.5% increase over 2014 and a total of 15,975,400 units. Plug-in share for 2015 was above 1% for the first time, 1.24% to be precise. The share for 2014 had been 0.66%. The 99% sales expansion is a great result for Europe. Growth is accelerating; between 2013 and 2014 it was only 47%, and 55% a year earlier. Plug-ins are gaining awareness and, finally, broader acceptance.
As a result of the sales run triggered in the Netherlands by the expiration of incentives, the country became the top EV market in Europe, surpassing Norway — and also becoming the third-largest EV market globally (behind China and the US). The year-on-year sales increase for the Netherlands in 2015 was 183%.
Despite this sales run, Norway apparently remained the market leader in 2015, as far as share of the total auto market held by EVs goes. 19% of the country’s new auto sales were EVs (this includes PHEVs).
Image Credits: EV-Volumes