EU Overtakes the Rest of the World (Except China) in EV Adoption – CleanTechnica

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Last Updated on: 29th July 2025, 10:52 am

I received the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) vehicle sales report for the first half of 2025, and I wasn’t surprised at all.

From 2009 until 2011, electric vehicle sales were slower in the whole of Europe. Only the Nissan LEAF proved to be a viable EV from its introduction in December 2010 in the UK and 2011 in parts of Europe. By the end of 2011, some 22,000 were sold globally. But by 2014, EV sales were starting to pick up in the EU, way before Brexit.

In 2014, a second set of regulations further tightened the targets, requiring average CO2 emissions of new cars to fall to 95 g/km by 2021. This, alongside the incentive mechanism for zero- and low-emission vehicles (ZLEVs) introduced in 2019, truly spurred manufacturers to develop and push EV models. After the pandemic, European carmakers began to fully embrace the electrification of their car models to comply with these increasingly stringent CO2 targets.

While the overall new car market saw a slight decline of 1.9 percent in the EU during the first half of 2025 (to 5.58 million vehicles), the increasing adoption of battery-electric, hybrid-electric, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles signals a decisive shift away from traditional petrol and diesel cars. This rapid electrification in Europe positions the continent as a global leader in EV adoption, second only to China.

European Union growth

The ACEA report indicated a total of 869,271 new battery-electric cars were registered in the EU during the 1st half of 2025, capturing a 15.6 percent market share. This represents a substantial increase from the 12.5 percent share observed in the first half of 2024. Three of the four largest markets within the EU — Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands — were key drivers of this growth, reporting gains of 35.1 percent, 19.5 percent, and 6.1 percent respectively. However, France presented a contrasting picture, experiencing a 6.4 percent decline in battery-electric car registrations, partly due to subsidy cuts. Spain, despite a lower baseline, showed remarkable growth, an 83 percent increase in BEV registrations in H1 2025.

Hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs) continued their impressive ascent, solidifying their position as the most popular powertrain type among EU consumers. New HEV registrations soared to 1,942,762 units, accounting for a significant 34.8 percent of the total EU market share. Growth in this segment was fueled by strong performances in the four biggest markets: France (+34.1 percent), Spain (+32.8 percent), Italy (+10 percent), and Germany (+9.9 percent).

The plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) segment also demonstrated remarkable momentum, with 469,410 units registered in the first half of 2025. This surge was predominantly driven by substantial increases in Germany (+55.1 percent), Spain (+82.5 percent), and Italy (+56.3 percent). As a result, PHEVs now command 8.4 percent of total car registrations in the EU, up from 6.9 percent in June 2024 year-to-date. The year-on-year variation for June 2025 further highlighted this trend, with PHEVs recording a robust 41.6 percent increase, outpacing the more modest gains of 7.8 percent for battery-electric and 6.1 percent for hybrid-electric cars. Chinese manufacturers are also increasingly leveraging PHEVs for the European market, as import duties are significantly lower than for full electric vehicles.

Diesel and gas vehicles down

In stark contrast to the burgeoning EV market, petrol and diesel car registrations continued their sharp decline. By the end of June 2025, petrol car registrations had plummeted by 21.2 percent, with all major markets experiencing decreases. France saw the steepest drop at 33.7 percent, followed by Germany (-27.8 percent), Italy (-17.2 percent), and Spain (-13.4 percent). The market share for petrol cars consequently fell to 28.4 percent from 35.4 percent in the previous year. Similarly, the diesel car market contracted by 28.1 percent, leaving it with a mere 9.4 percent share of total EU car registrations in June 2025 year-to-date. The year-on-year variation for June 2025 showed an even more pronounced decline, with petrol registrations down 25.4 percent and diesel down 34.1 percent. The combined market share of petrol and diesel cars dropped from 48.2 percent in H1 2024 to 37.8 percent in H1 2025.

Globally, the first half of 2025 saw over 9.1 million EV sales, a 28 percent increase year-on-year.

China remains the undisputed global leader in EV adoption, with 5.5 million units sold in H1 2025, representing a 32 percent jump year-over-year and accounting for over 60 percent of all EVs sold worldwide. Nearly half of new cars bought in China are now electric. Europe, with 2.0 million EVs sold in the first half of the year, saw a 26 percent increase, making it the second-largest EV market globally. In comparison, North America’s EV sales grew by just 3 percent during the same period, indicating a significantly slower pace of electrification. Countries like Norway (96 percent combined BEV/PHEV share), Denmark (66 percent), Sweden (60 percent), and the Netherlands (55 percent) continue to lead in EV penetration even among European nations.

This study, which focuses on the European Union, includes the 27 member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.

Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, which are European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, and the United Kingdom are not included in this article, even if their numbers and market in BEV adoption rates are higher in totality by 6.3 percent compared to all EU countries combined. The EFTA + UK will be presented in a separate article.