Europe-wide strong increase in new e-car registrations

28.07.2025

Source: E & M powernews

Almost 870,000 battery electric cars rolled onto the roads in the European Union in the first half of the year. Sales figures fell in two member states.

New registrations of electric cars in Europe are on the up: according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (AECA), 869,271 battery electric vehicles were sold in the EU in the first six months of the year. This is 22 percent more than in the same period in 2024. The association puts the share of these models in total sales at 15.6 percent, compared to 12.5 percent in the first half of 2024.

For Germany, the largest sales market in the EU, manufacturers are recording an increase of 35.1%. The number 2 car market, France, is bucking the trend. The number of newly registered battery electric vehicles is 6 percent lower than in the same period last year.

In Belgium, the market with the third largest sales volume, there was an increase of 19.1 percent. The Netherlands, number 4, recorded 6.1 percent battery electric vehicles. The small market in Romania is shrinking, with a drop of 44.3 percent and 3,210 new vehicles according to the statistics for the first half of the year.

Almost 2 million new cars with hybrid drive

New registrations for hybrid vehicles totaled over 1.9 million vehicles (1,942,762 units to be exact). This is 17.1 percent more than in the first few months of last year. In France, there was an increase of 34.1 percent. In Spain the increase is 32.8 percent, in Italy 10 percent and in Germany 9.9 percent. According to ACEA, hybrid models now account for 34.8 percent of the entire EU market.

Plug-in hybrid vehicles account for 469,410 new registrations across the EU - an increase of 19.5% compared to the figure for January to June 2024. The increase in sales in Germany is 55.1%. In Spain, it amounts to 82.5 percent and in Italy to 56.3 percent. Plug-in hybrids account for 8.4% of all car registrations.

There are clear signs of a slowdown in the sale of petrol and diesel cars. Their market share slipped to 37.8% in the first half of the year - down from 48.2% in the previous year.

The car market in the EU as a whole is in decline. ACEA reports around 5.58 million new registrations. This represents a decline of 1.9% compared to the first six months of 2024.

The Europe-wide registration figures are available to download online.

Author: Manfred Fischer