Number of electric cars in the Netherlands has increased to 14 percent

Almost 14 percent of cars in the Netherlands are either partly or fully electric, sector organizations BOVAG and RAI Vereniging reported. The number of electric or hybrid cars was only 3.7 percent of all vehicles five years ago.

More than 1.3 million of the 9.4 million cars that were registered in the Netherlands at the beginning of 2024 are fully electric or hybrid. This increased significantly over the last three years. Around 113,961 new electric cars were bought last year, which is an increase of 56 percent compared to a year earlier.

There is also more demand for hybrid cars “with as a result that over two-thirds (68 percent) of all newly registered cars is electric in some way,” the sector organizations stated.

“It is evident that this development has positive effects on the number of CO2 emissions.” According to BOVAG and RAI, the Netherlands is among the European member states with the lowest average CO2 emissions per newly sold car after Sweden, Finland, and Denmark.

The purchase price of a new car was an average of 48,118 euros at the beginning of this year, which is around 2,000 euros more than last year.

There are significant differences when it comes to the fuel types. A diesel car is the most expensive, with an average price of 92,117 euros. A plug-in hybrid costs an average of 74,553 euros, and a fully electric car costs 52,439 euros. A petrol car is somewhat cheaper with an average price of 35,373 euros.

The September car sales figures from the same sector associations previously showed that the number of electric cars registered was significantly higher than a year earlier. Consumers were hesitant, but companies are clearly working on electrifying their fleets.

Other countries have seen sales of electric cars drop. According to specialists, this is due to many governments phasing out their incentive measures. The struggling economy in some parts of the world is also playing a part in the decline.

At the same time, vigilance is also required, the RAI Association warned last week. The reduction of tax benefits and subsidies could cause the growth of sales of electric cars in the Netherlands to stagnate, said Huub Dubbelman of RAI Vereniging.