A new global report has found that there could be 145 million electric cars on the world’s roads by the end of the decade.
Currently, there are 11m battery-powered options on the roads, but this is set to increase dramatically, with a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) finding that global EV sales were 140 per cent higher during the first quarter of 2021 than in the same period in 2020.
The IEA is predicting that, under current policies to drive EV uptake, there will be 145 million electric cars on the road, though even this will account for just seven per cent of all vehicles. In fact, the agency says that if governments ‘accelerate efforts to reach climate goals’, there could be 230 million battery-powered cars being used, which would account for 12 per cent of all vehicles.
Elsewhere, during 2020 Europe overtook China to have the world’s largest electric car market, while globally $14bn (£10bn) was spent by governments to support EV sales – a 25 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2019.
Despite the steep uptake of EVs, though, the IEA has said that ‘reaching a trajectory consistent with climate goals’ represents a ‘formidable challenge’ and ‘requires stronger ambition and action from all countries’.
In the UK in 2020, 108,205 new electric cars were registered – a steep 186 per cent increase on the 37,850 battery-powered models sold in 2019. Here, the government is also set to ban new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2030, though plug-in hybrids will be allowed for a further five years.
