Hitting record, electric cars sales in Norway near 80% in 2022

OSLO: Almost four out of five new cars sold in Norway last year were battery-powered, with Tesla the top-selling brand for the second year in a row, registration data showed on Monday.

Seeking to become the first nation to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2025, oil-producing Norway has until now exempted battery-powered fully electric vehicles (BEV) from taxes imposed on rivals using internal combustion engines (ICE).

The share of new electric vehicles rose to 79.3% in 2022 from 65% in 2021 and from a mere 2.9% a decade ago, the Norwegian Road Federation (OFV) said.

Tesla had a 12.2% share of the overall car market in Norway, making it the number one brand for a second consecutive year, ahead of Volkswagen with 11.6%.

The Tesla Model Y was the single most popular model of the year, ahead of Volkswagen's electric ID.4 in second place, and Skoda Enyaq in third.