EVs accelerate to two million on the world’s roads

The number of electric vehicles (EVs) around the world rose to around two million in 2016, following strong growth the year before. That’s according to a new report from the International Energy […]

The number of electric vehicles (EVs) around the world rose to around two million in 2016, following strong growth the year before.

That’s according to a new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), which suggests up to 20 million electric cars could be deployed by 2020, with this figure potentially rising to 70 million by 2025.

However, it also suggests in order to limit temperature increases to below 2°C by the end of the century, the number of electric cars will need to reach 600 million by 2040.

The report shows China, the US and Europe were the three main markets for EVs in 2016, making up more than 90% of the total global figure.

China remained the largest market, accounting for more than 40% of all EVs sold globally – it is home to more than 200 million electric two-wheelers and around 300,000 electric buses.

In Norway, electric cars had the highest global market share, at 29% last year.

It was followed by the Netherlands with 6.4% and Sweden with 3.4%.

The IEA report suggests EV adoption is generally higher in cities than in rural areas.

Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco and Portland are leading a partnership of more than 30 cities to purchase EVs for their public fleets including police cars, street sweepers and rubbish trucks.

The group is currently planning to purchase around 110,000 EVs, a significant number when compared to the 160,000 sold across the whole US in 2016.

Higher insurance premiums could be putting off drivers from switching to greener vehicles.

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