David Savage. Image: Geotab
David Savage of Geotab said that people are hesitant to invest in electric vehicles as Ireland had one of the worst EV sales performances in the EU last month.
Ireland is falling significantly behind other European countries in the uptake of electric vehicles as latest data shows it recorded the largest year-on-year decline in EV sales of any EU member state last month.
According to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association analysed and shared by telematics company Geotab today (19 April), EV sales in Ireland fell by nearly 42pc last month compared to March 2023.
This is in stark contrast to countries such as Belgium and France, where EV sales were up by nearly 24pc and 11pc respectively, an indicator that Ireland is missing out on the opportunity to switch to electric vehicles en masse and meet the Government’s climate goal of having 945,000 electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030.
The data analysed by Geotab also shows that Ireland ranked tenth in EV sales across all 27 EU member states last year. And even though Ireland’s overall market share for zero-emission vehicles grew by nearly 15pc in 2022 and nearly 19pc last year, the latest data represents a worrying reversal that makes it the worst-performing country in the EU.
David Savage, vice-president of Geotab Ireland and UK, said that passenger cars were responsible for 53pc of transport emissions in 2021 – more than heavy goods vehicles, light goods vehicles and buses combined.
“The Minister for Transport has described the electrification of the national fleet as the biggest policy lever available to the Government within the National Climate Plan. Despite the importance of zero-emission vehicles in achieving the country’s climate targets, EV sales are now in decline in Ireland,” he said.
“The two primary factors that need to be addressed to kickstart the market are price and the charging network. Despite the Government’s own advice highlighting the Danish experience, the decision to reduce grants has had a detrimental effect on sales.”
According to Savage, one of the main concerns of potential EV buyers is “range anxiety” as people hesitate to invest in zero-emission vehicles if they are not “fully confident” of completing long journeys.
“Government strategy in this regard centres on home charging, but there is a clear need to bolster the availability of public chargers, particularly rapid chargers.”
According to the Society of the Irish Motor Industry, about 2,000 new EVs were registered last month. Overall, there has been a 14.3pc decrease in EV registrations this year compared to the same period last year.
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