Electric car sales across Europe plummeted last month, with demand weakening despite the EU’s efforts to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles by the mid-2030s.
The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) reported an 11.3% decline in sales of battery-powered vehicles. Notably, in Germany—Europe’s largest economy—demand for electric cars fell sharply by 28.9%.
Electric vehicles accounted for only 13% of new car registrations, a decrease from 13.9% in March of the previous year and down from 14.6% for the entirety of 2023.
This downturn in electric car sales occurs even as Europe moves forward with plans to prohibit the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines by 2035.
Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, and Tesla have all reported declines in electric vehicle sales for the first quarter of the year.
This coincides with an overall drop of 5.3% in new vehicle registrations across the European Union, totalling 1 million last month.
The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) attributes the March sales dip to the early occurrence of the Easter holidays.
Hybrid vehicles saw an increase in market share, making up 29% of sales in March, up from 24.4% in the same month last year.
Sales of petrol vehicles fell by 10.2%, with significant decreases observed in France, Spain, and Germany.
The diesel market experienced an even steeper decline, with sales dropping by 18.5% in March.
