Spain reported a 48.7% increase in electric passenger car sales in the first half of this year, with 57,216 new units registered, Kallanish learns from the e-mobility association AEDIVE and the country’s National Association of Motor Vehicle Dealers (GANVAM).

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) registrations totalled 31,654 units, while battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations rose to 25,562 units in the six-month period. This represents a 74% on-year growth for BEV sales and a 33% rise in PHEV sales.

Similar to May, the highest monthly growth in June was seen in the BEV market, with registrations increasing by 84.4% to 5,855 units. PHEV registrations, meanwhile, rose 51.7% month-on-month to 6,439 units. Overall, passenger EV sales accounted for 11.78% of the Spanish car market in the last month.  

While the market for electric passenger cars continues to grow in the European nation, the sales volume is still below that needed to meet the national targets, according to the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (ANFAC). Spain’s national energy and climate plan has a target of 190,000 EV sales by 2023. However, forecasts suggest that the country will only reach 110,000 units by the end of this year, the trade body says.

José López-Tafall, general director of ANFAC, notes that EVs constituted only 11% of Spain’s total car market in the first half of this year. In contrast, the rest of Europe reported double the share. “Spain does not have a supply problem, it has a scarce and little stimulated demand,” López-Tafall explains.

Additionally, the general director praised the government's recent decision to offer a 15% income tax rebate for electric car buyers. The move to encourage clean driving comes as part of a larger anti-inflation package totalling €8.9 billion ($9.7 billion).

However, López-Tafall also notes that while the measure is an “important first step,” more needs to be done to promote and encourage electric vehicles. “In the future, we have to find an alternative system that allows the aid to be collected at the time of purchase and, in parallel, reduce the processing and administrative expenses that the current model imposes on all the administrations involved.”