Norway has maintained its vast lead as the world’s leading adopter of electric vehicles (EVs), announcing this week that nearly 11,000 new EVs were registered across the country in November, a 93.6 per cent share of the total new car sales for the month.
Norway has for a long time now led the world in terms of incentivising and promoting zero emission vehicles. According to the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association (Norsk elbilforening), a range of incentives “have been gradually introduced by different governments and broad coalitions of parties since the early 1990s to speed up the transition.”
Current efforts include a national goal that all new cars sold by 2025 should be zero emission, backed by higher taxes for higher emitting cars, purchase incentives, and discounts on toll roads and ferries.
According to the most recent figures from Norway’s Road Traffic Information Council (Opplysningsrådet for veitrafikken, or OFV), the share of BEVs had increased to 89.3 per cent of all new cars registered over the first 11 months of 2024.
In November alone, 10,940 new BEVs were sold and registered in Norway, a market share of 93.6 per cent.
And, with 154 plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs) sold during November accounting for a market share of 1.3 per cent, that means that only 5.1 per cent of all new cars sold in Norway in November were without a charging connection.
The top five best-selling car models in November were all BEVs, led by the Tesla Model Y with 1,491 new registrations. The Tesla Model 3, Volkswagen ID.4, Skoda Enyaq, and Toyota bZ4X rounded out the top five spots.
“Norway holds the world record one month after the other,” said Øyvind Solberg Thorsen, OFV director. “No one is close to such high electric car numbers.
“Politician-led direction and incentives have made it possible. If the trend is to continue so that we reach the adopted 2025 target that all new cars and vans must be zero-emission vehicles, then both policy, tax level and incentives must be continued.”
Solberg Thorsen does acknowledge, however, that “perhaps around 95 per cent electric cars are good enough for now” given that “we cannot pretend that all the infrastructure is in place and that today’s electric cars cover everyone’s needs.”
He cites “geographical and climatic conditions and special needs” as situations which might necessitate greater leeway, adding that emergency vehicles are another example, but that “for the absolute majority, the electric car will be the right choice.”
Joshua S. Hill is a Melbourne-based journalist who has been writing about climate change, clean technology, and electric vehicles for over 15 years. He has been reporting on electric vehicles and clean technologies for Renew Economy and The Driven since 2012. His preferred mode of transport is his feet.