Norway has become the first country in the world with more electric cars than petrol cars. This does not come as a complete surprise as the country has been one of the front runners of the electric vehicle revolution. According to stats released by the Norwegian Road Federation, there are 754,303 electric cars. In comparison, the total petrol car tally stands at 753,905 in the 2.9 million total private registered cars. Diesel is still ahead of electric vehicles but will be dethroned soon, considering the growth in the sales of EVs.
Electric Car Plans
Norway has aims of becoming the first nation where new petrol and diesel cars will be banned by 2025. The most significant part of making this plan possible is the subsidies and incentives that they have provided that incentivise people to buy electric vehicles instead of the ones running on fossil fuels. It might actually become a reality as, at present, nine out of 10 new cars sold in Norway are electric vehicles. Many areas have free parking for EVs, and their drivers do not have to pay city tolls. The charging facilities of the country are also top-notch, with as many as 2,000 free chargers in the city of Oslo alone.
How Did Norway Achieve it?
A big factor in the Norwegian success with Electric cars is the country's sovereign wealth fund, which has a net worth of more than Rs 142 trillion ($1.7 trillion). This is made by the sale of oil and gas, in which Norway sits at the top of the world. The fund helps the government in offering all the incentives and subsidies to the electric car users.
What the Road Federation Head Said
Norwegian Road Federation OFV director Oyvind Solberg Thorsen said, "This is historic. A milestone few saw coming 10 years ago. The electrification of the fleet of passenger cars is going quickly, and Norway is thereby rapidly moving towards becoming the first country in the world with a passenger car fleet dominated by electric cars.
EVs Across The World
Unlike Norway, the electric vehicle transition has been relatively slow across the world. It has led to companies like Volvo, Ford, GM, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Jaguar Land Rover, and Aston Martin reconsidering their electric plans. China is another market with stellar EV sales growth, similar to Norway, which recently hit 1 million EV sales in a month. Its companies have become a challenge for automakers across the world. The prime example is BYD, which surpassed Tesla in becoming the biggest EV seller in the world.
To check out all the latest updates of the car industry, click here.
