Norway At 79.1% Plugin Electric Market Share In February

Norway had a record February plugin electric vehicle market share of 79.1%, up from 68.1% in February 2020. The overall auto market was up 3.3% year-on-year. Best selling models in February were the Audi e-tron, Nissan LEAF and Hyundai Kona.

February’s 79.1% plugin result consisted of 47.5% full battery electrics (BEVs) and 31.5% plugin hybrids. This was a big shift towards PHEVs from recent months, partly due to two of the most popular BEVs, the Volkswagen ID.3 and Tesla Model 3, still not yet having delivered in their usual volumes in 2021.

Old school petrol and diesel combustion sales were down significantly year-on-year, from a combined 21.5% share in February 2020 to just 12.7% last month. Plugless hybrids were also down, from 11% in February 2020 to 8.2% last month.

Best Selling BEVs

The Audi e-tron retained its long standing #1 BEV spot in February:

Some of the popular BEV models roughly maintained their 2020 monthly volumes, whilst others are still not yet being delivered in their usual numbers in 2021. Those that are fairly consistent in volume include the Audi e-tron, Nissan LEAF, Hyundai Kona, and MG ZS. Notably, the Peugeot e-2008, Polestar 2, Volvo XC40 and Kia Niro all saw increase in volume over their 2020 monthly averages.

On the other hand, decreased in volume so far in 2021 are last year’s #2 and #3 best sellers, the Tesla Model 3 (around half its 2020 monthly volume) and the VW ID.3 (with around 128 units, just 7% of its 2020 Q4 monthly volumes). This is mainly because of stock-and-shipping juggling by the manufacturers, not due to any demand issue, and both will be back in strong numbers in the coming months.

March, historically, is a high water mark for plugin sales in Norway, and we can expect BEV volumes to come back strongly then, likely well above 80% share territory. With ever more compelling and affordable BEVs appearing on the market, 2021 will see plugin share continue to break new ground in Norway.