Sales of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids in Europe jumped by 42 percent annually in the first half of 2018, hitting the 1-million milestone, with the plug-in share of the European light vehicle market at 2 percent, data compiled by sales database and analytics firm EV-Volumes showed.

The sales of battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrids (PHEV) in Europe came in at 195,000 units in the first half this year, with 51 percent recorded as pure EVs and the rest plug-in hybrids.

EV-Volumes expects 430,000 plug-ins to be delivered in Europe for full-year 2018, and plug-ins to have a market share of 2.35 percent.

The European plug-in vehicle fleet has crossed the 1 million unit threshold, EV-Volumes says, expecting the fleet to number 1,350,000 units at the end of this year.

Norway continues to lead the European rankings with the highest number of plug-in sales. However, German sales are catching up fast, and EV-Volumes expects Germany to take the lead in Europe when 2018 ends, due to the large size of its total car market.

Norway’s share of plug-ins out of the total vehicle fleet is unrivalled, with a staggering share of 37 percent of light vehicle sales and a 46.5-percent share in passenger car sales only.

The Nordic countries as a whole lead EV adoption in Europe, sales and market share figures show, according to EV-Volumes.

“Except in Denmark, where the market was confused by incomprehensible green car taxation plans, the Nordic countries lead in EV adoption. The plug-in share in Norway is off the chart, as usual, with 37 % YTD,” the sales database firm said.

In Europe’s top five car markets by size—Germany, the UK, France, Spain, and Italy—combined sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids rose by just 33 percent in the first half this year, compared to a 54-percent surge in the same period last year, as customers are still wary of limited driving ranges of the models and an insufficient charging network, according to estimates by consultancy EY.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: