In this European country, there are more electric cars than gasoline cars on the roads
There are now more electric vehicles than petrol vehicles on Norwegian roads. © Audi
Norway has a bit of a dichotomous side, drawing the country's wealth mainly from natural gas and oil, but fighting against thermal vehicles as much as possible, not without success. Thus, over the whole of 2023, no less than 82.4% of cars sold in the country were 100% electric.
Since the beginning of 2024, while EV sales have stagnated in Europe and even collapsed in Germany, almost 90% of vehicles sold in Norway are electric.
The country's big advantages
Although a producer and exporter of oil and natural gas, Norway also produces its own electricity, mainly renewable. This energy is therefore inexpensive, making the EV all the more attractive since fuels are heavily taxed and particularly expensive.
But this is not enough to direct buyers towards electric, so the state has heavily subsidized these vehicles, exempting them from 25% VAT and registration tax (around €11,500). On a daily basis, EVs paid little or nothing for urban tolls, ferries or parking while they could use bus/taxi lanes.
Tax exemptions and other free usage benefits for EVs have largely propelled this technology to the top of sales. © BMW
It was therefore much cheaper to drive electric, which explains the success of this technology. Success that weighs heavily on the country's finances, however, and many of them are reduced or gradually eliminated. VAT is only offered for vehicles under 500,000 Norwegian kroner (around €42,800 at current exchange rates).
More electric than gasoline
In January, Norway sold 92.1% of EVs and still 89.1% in March despite a (very) slight decline. But this was enough for the number of electric vehicles on Norwegian roads to exceed that of vehicles running on unleaded fuel on September 16. This was then 754,303 EVs compared to 753,905 gasoline vehicles, representing 26.26% and 26.24% of the mix respectively.
A victory that takes great care to set aside PHEVs (198,707 vehicles for 6.92% of the mix) and other full hybrids (155,307 vehicles for 5.41%), which also burn unleaded. The feat is nonetheless impressive.
The share of electric vehicles continues to grow, but diesel remains the preferred fuel for Norwegians. © Opplysningsrådet for Veitrafikken (OFV)
However, we are talking here about vehicles running on gasoline, and not refined petroleum. Indeed, diesel vehicles remain the most numerous in the country with 999,715 of them on the roads, or 34.8% of the mix. Note however that in March 2024, these figures were still 1,068,929 diesels, 776,003 gasolines and 700,358 EVs.
Ingvild Kilen Roerholt, head of transport research at the Zero think tank, told Reuters in April 2024 that electric vehicles could overtake the total number of petrol and diesel cars in the country as early as 2029.
