The take-up of EVs has been frustrated by concerns over the fast degradation of batteries and the slow rollout of charging stations. Photograph: PA
Central Statistics Office figures show new EV licensed vehicles, a proxy for sales, totalled 6,780 in the first three months of 2024. This was 9.7 per cent down on the 7,513 recorded for the same period last year. The move to phase out traditional petrol and diesel engines in favour of EVs is central to the Government’s Climate Action Plan. The plan aims to have almost a million EVs on Irish roads by 2030, comprising 845,000 cars and a further 100,000 vans, trucks and buses.
The figures also show the number of new licensed petrol and electric hybrid cars increased by 59 per cent from 7,032 to 11,202 in the first three months of 2024.