SALES of fully electric cars in Europe's main auto markets surged in April, extending strong growth as subsidies, policy support and higher petrol prices lifted demand, according to data published on Wednesday.
Battery-electric vehicle (BEV) registrations, a proxy for sales, rose 34.1 percent from a year ago to 201,541 vehicles across 15 European markets, following a 51.3 percent rise in March, data from E-Mobility Europe, New Automotive and Fier Automotive showed.
The growth suggests the shift to electric cars is accelerating in Europe even as carmakers face weaker consumer demand in some markets and rising pressure from Chinese rivals.
"The policy lesson is clear: where governments give consumers confidence, BEV uptake accelerates," the groups said in a joint statement, citing industrial investment and measures such as social leasing, purchase incentives and tax breaks.
Regional picture uneven
The regional picture, however, remained uneven.
In the first four months of the year, battery-electric registrations rose 31.3 percent to 740,021 vehicles, the groups said.
The increase helped cut oil consumption by nearly 3 million barrels. Germany remained the largest market by volume, with battery-electric vehicles at 25.8 percent of registrations in April, while France reached 26.2 percent.
Northern Europe stayed ahead of the region, with Norway at 98.6 percent and Denmark at 81.9 percent. Finland and Sweden posted shares of 48.8 percent and 40.7 percent.
From a lower base, Spain's battery-electric registrations rose 37.3 percent year to date and Poland's 50.1 percent, though both remained below a 10 percent share.
Italy was the fastest-growing large market, up 97.2 percent. The figures, drawn from the European Alternative Fuels Observatory, precede European Automobile Manufacturers' Association registration data due on May 27.
