Sales of clean vehicles (hybrids, BEVs/electrics and PHEVs/plug-in hybrids) in Europe* fell 4.4% in the second quarter of this year to 1.039 million vehicles after an impressive 259% increase in 2021, further reflecting manufacturers. Problems with component shortages, according to analysis by Strategy&, the global strategy division of the PwC network.

According to the cited source, the first two quarters of 2021 saw growth of 100% and 259% respectively, after which growth slowed to 32% in the third quarter, 6% in the fourth quarter and 13% in the first quarter of 2022. .

“The decline in sales reflects the growing problems of manufacturers with shortages of auto components and, implicitly, with delays in deliveries. The Romanian market, still small, continues to grow at a rate of more than 100%, and in July sales of electrified cars exceeded diesel cars for the first time. The impressive evolution of sales of environmentally friendly cars over the past year and a half reflects primarily the impact of incentives provided by the government through the Rabla Plus program. Incentives and regulations are the engine to achieve Romania’s carbon reduction targets through the PNRR and the Green Deal, as well as to renew the car fleet, one of the oldest in Europe,” said Daniel Angel, Partner and CEO. for the automotive industry at PwC Romania.

In the first half of the year, the market share of ecological cars in Europe reached 45.6%, of which more than half are hybrids (24%).

Consumers are especially interested in electric cars

BEV sales were the only ones to continue their growth in the second quarter at the European level, registering an increase of 8.1%, which, however, could not offset the decline recorded by hybrids (-17.5%) and hybrids (-4.8% ). The reported decline in plug-in hybrids in Europe can be attributed primarily to a lack of production as manufacturers favor BEVs.

In fact, the automakers’ strategy is reflected in the doubling of BEV market share over the past two years from 7% to 13%. The electric Fiat 500 leads the top BEV sales in Europe in the first half of the year, followed by the Tesla Model 3, Renault ZOE, Dacia Spring, Peugeot 208 EV, Tesla Model 3, Renault Twingo EV, Hyundai Kona Electric, Volkswagen and Opel Corsa – this is .

“Sales of environmentally friendly cars, and in particular fully electric cars, will continue to grow at the European level against the backdrop of ambitious CO2 reduction targets and the phasing out of internal combustion engines in some countries. All this encourages car manufacturers to orient their strategy in this direction, large-scale investments in the launch of new models, as well as in the production of batteries and new technologies have been announced for the coming years,” said Daniel Angel.

Globally, China is seeing the largest growth in electric vehicle sales

Global sales of green cars rose 29% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, as the overall car market declined.

The bulk of this growth was attributed to China, where sales of hybrid, BEV/electric and PHEV/plug-in hybrid vehicles increased by 90.3%. In contrast to Europe, PHEV sales growth in China was even faster at 144% compared to BEV sales at 87%.

After taking some time to gain momentum, the US BEV market has recently continued its rapid growth, reaching 63% in the second quarter of 2022. BEV market share has tripled in 18 months from 1.6% in 2020 to 4.8% at the end of June this year. In general, the US market for environmentally friendly cars grew by 20%.

*The strategy& report analyzes ten major European automotive markets, namely Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Austria.

Article supported by PwC Romania