The rate of adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in western countries continues to wane. In the UK, EVs’ market share of all new cars for 2024 will barely hit 20%, somewhat below the government goal of 22%. New car registrations of hybrid cars have grown at almost double the rate of battery EVs in the first four months of the year.
In a far cry from a year or two ago, the same has been happening in other countries. Hybrid market share across Europe has risen from about 25% to 30% in the past year, while battery EVs are down from about 18% to 13%. This has encouraged automakers like Ford to switch from prioritising battery EVs to hybrids.
It’s now looking increasingly difficult for governments to meet their targets for zero-emission vehicles. The UK, for instance, is aiming for 80% of all new car sales to be zero emissions by 2030 and 100% by 2035.
