The switch to electric motoring, a key element of the Government’s climate strategy, appears to have stalled, with the number of newly-licensed electric vehicles (EVs) down by almost a quarter in the first seven months of the year.
Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures, published on Tuesday, show new EV licensed vehicles, a proxy for sales, totalled 12,765 in the seven-month period from January to July. This was 24 per cent down on the 16,766 registered this time last year.
July is one of the most significant months for motor sales as the 242 registration period opens.
Overall EVs represent just 14 per cent of all new cars licensed this year compared to 18 per cent last year. The CSO noted that the licensing of petrol and electric hybrid vehicles grew in both periods.
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The take-up of EVs has been frustrated by concerns over the fast degradation of batteries and the slow roll-out of State charging infrastructure. The Government’s decision to cut EV purchase grants is also thought to have been a factor.
The Government’s Climate Action Plan aims to have almost one million EVs on Irish roads by 2030, comprising 845,000 cars and a further 100,000 vans, trucks and buses. The latest registration figures raise further questions over what was already considered an ambitious target.
Overall the number of new private cars licensed rose by 3 per cent to 94,231 in the first seven months of the year, while the number of used (imported) cars licensed was 28 per cent higher at 36,753 over the same period.
The CSO figures show the number of new petrol and electric hybrid cars licensed rose by 33 per cent when compared with the same period in 2023 (19,230 versus 14,465). This has driven up the share of hybrids among new private cars from 18 per cent in 2023 to 22 per cent in 2024.
The combined share of petrol and diesel cars among new private cars licensed year-to-date has remained about the same as in 2023 at 56 per cent.
Toyota proved to be the most popular brand with Irish motorists, accounting for 2,546 of all new private cars licensed in July followed by Volkswagen (2,456), Hyundai (2,164), Skoda (1,600), and Kia (1,393). Together these five makes represented more than half (55 per cent) of all new private cars licensed in July.
The most popular brand of new EV licensed in July was the Volkswagen ID.4 (338) followed by Tesla’s Model Y (190) and Kia’s EV 6 (119).
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