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Review 2024: A Lost Year for E-Mobility

(dpa) For years, the sales of electric cars boomed in Germany - but in 2024, demand has drastically collapsed. Therefore, there is renewed discussion about subsidies: Chancellor Scholz is even calling for them at the EU level. However, a more effective measure would likely be a registration tax for combustion vehicles, as imposed by other countries.

Doesn't run: An employee of Porsche AG assembles a fully electric Porsche Taycan at the main plant in Zuffenhausen. | Photo: Marijan Murat/dpa
Doesn't run: An employee of Porsche AG assembles a fully electric Porsche Taycan at the main plant in Zuffenhausen. | Photo: Marijan Murat/dpa
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The boom in electric cars in Germany came to an abrupt halt last year. Only around 380,600 pure electric passenger cars were newly registered in 2024, as reported by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA). This was more than a quarter less than the previous year. The share of all new registrations fell by almost five percentage points to 13.5 percent compared to the previous year. The German government's goal of having around 15 million pure battery-powered cars on German roads by 2030 is thus moving far out of reach. According to the KBA, there were only around 1.4 million electric vehicles at the turn of the year.

Denmark and Sweden significantly ahead

Germany is also far from the quotas of some Scandinavian countries. In Denmark, for example, electric cars now account for more than half of all newly registered cars, as reported by the industry organization Mobility Denmark based on figures from the website Bilstatistik.dk. In December, their share of new registrations even amounted to 61.5 percent. 

Norway is in an even better position. Of the nearly 129,000 cars newly registered in Norway in 2024, a substantial 88.9 percent were electric cars, as reported by the interest organization OFV. The country has heavily invested in expanding the charging infrastructure and created financial incentives for purchases.

"2024 was a lost year for electromobility in Germany," said Constantin Gall, a mobility expert at the consulting company EY. "Although new and attractive models are coming to the market, the sales figures are significantly lower than expected by the industry and desired by politics."

Electric cars too expensive

He sees the abrupt end of the state purchase subsidies, which were surprisingly discontinued at the end of 2023 due to the Constitutional Court's budget ruling, as the main reason for the collapsed demand. Experts also point out the still high prices for electric cars in Germany. Particularly, German manufacturers have so far mainly introduced electrified versions of their high-priced premium models to the market. In Germany, customers can only get three models for less than 30,000 euros, criticized the ADAC at the end of November during a meeting of the automotive industry with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD).

Subsidy is an election campaign issue: Scholz wants EU incentives

The issue of electric car subsidies has long since reached the election campaign. Scholz recently spoke out in favor of a European approach to subsidies. "We also need support measures," he said after an EU summit in Brussels in December. Since the market for electric cars is a European one, with interconnected production, supply, and customer structures, it would be best "if we found a European solution regarding purchase incentives," said the SPD politician. He mentioned tax advantages or purchase premiums as examples. A similar demand is also in the SPD election program.
 

CSU proposes purchase premium of up to 3,600 euros

The CSU, in the event of a Union victory in the federal election in February, has announced a purchase premium of up to 3,600 euros. This emerges from a paper for the retreat of CSU Bundestag members at the Upper Bavarian monastery Seeon. The draft is available to the German Press Agency, previously reported by Bavarian Radio.

The paper states that the subsidy should primarily take into account the transport route from assembly to the point of sale. Thus, priority should be given to promoting e-cars produced in Germany. "This brings a double benefit: for jobs in Germany and for the climate," said CSU state group leader Alexander Dobrindt. According to the paper, the purchase premium should be a maximum of 3,600 euros, and monthly leasing fees could decrease by 100 euros.

Greenpeace calls for registration tax for combustion engines

The environmental organization Greenpeace reiterated calls for higher taxation of new cars with combustion engines. Such a tax already exists in numerous European countries. "In countries like Sweden, the Netherlands, or Denmark, buying a new combustion vehicle incurs low taxes for fuel-efficient new cars, but high taxes for particularly climate-damaging gas guzzlers," said Greenpeace mobility expert Marion Tiemann. The tax revenues could finance a purchase premium of 4,500 euros for about 1.8 million electric cars, it was stated.

The situation in the automotive industry remains tense

Last year, according to the KBA, around 2.8 million cars were newly registered in Germany. This was about one percent less than the previous year and around a quarter less than in 2019, the last year before the coronavirus pandemic. The number of new registrations in December was more than 7 percent below the level of the previous year, with around 224,700 vehicles.

Translated automatically from German.
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