World EV sales doubled in 2013; tax policy played a key, but variable, role in growth - report
Mon 05 May 2014
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A new study says that electric vehicle uptake is on the increase largely due to effective fiscal policies. The report from the International Council on Clean Transport (ICCT) evaluated the response to fiscal incentives that governments in major vehicle markets worldwide have deployed to promote plug-in electric vehicles.
The study, which details differences in the fiscal policies used to support electric vehicle (EV) sales across eleven major car markets (eight European countries, China, Japan, and the United States), demonstrates clearly that tax exemptions and subsidies are playing a key role in spurring electric vehicle markets.
Norway and the Netherlands, in particular, are stand-out examples of the relationship between fiscal incentives and electric vehicle sales. Germany and the UK, however, are among the slower growing EV markets, with EVs representing only about 0.2 per cent of all new sales.
The report compiled data from government and industry sources on overall vehicle sales, plug-in electric vehicle sales, vehicle taxation policy, vehicle taxation exemptions, and electric vehicle subsidies.
The correlation between fiscal incentives and electric vehicle sales is clear in some cases. “Norway and the Netherlands are good examples of markets where high levels of fiscal incentives lead directly to high numbers of electric vehicles sales,” says Dr Peter Mock, Managing Director of ICCT Europe and one of the authors of the study.
Factors beyond government incentives were however cited as being influential in the take-up of EVs including C02 standards, electric vehicle requirements, charging infrastructure investments, electric utility actions and consumer awareness campaigns. Regions such as California have implemented a more comprehensive electric vehicle deployment plan that includes vehicle manufacturer policies.
The latest figures show that nearly 200,000 EVs were sold around the World in 2013. Sales have roughly doubled each year in the past two or three years.
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