EU-EFTA Nations Ramp Up Electric Vans, Trucks
Mitchel R. Confesor
Digital Content Marketing and Social Media in the Local and Regional Automotive Aftermarket Sector
By MITCH R. CONFESOR
MANILA, 6 April 2024 — Bulgaria, Greece and Lithuania have been leading European Union (UN) nations as well as the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in ramping up electrically chargeable vans – covering battery electric and plug-in hybrid versions – with rising percentage growth year-to-date (YTD) for 2022-2023.
On a much smaller scale, however, Poland, Portugal and the Netherlands in the EU as well as Iceland within EFTA were leading the rest in also ramping up electrically chargeable trucks (battery electric and plug-in hybrids) with considerable percentage growth YTD the past couple of years.
Croatia, Cyprus and France meanwhile have been leaders in EU-EFTA nations in incrementally increasing hybrid electric vans – including full and mild hybrid versions – in percentage growth YTD for 2022-2023. Italy and the Netherlands were leaders in the EU when it came to improving numbers of hybrid electric trucks, aside from the United Kingdom outside of the EU.
When it comes to percentage growth YTD 2022-2023 for fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), natural gas vehicles (NGVs), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vehicles, E85/ethanol and other fuel power sources, Hungary as well as Sweden and Czechia lead in vans, while Denmark and Hungary lead in trucks in the EU, aside from Iceland within EFTA.
Diesel vs Petrol
Austria leads EU nations in heavily surging up volume and percentage growth of diesel vans with skyrocketing percentage growth YTD 2022-2023, with Croatia and Czechia closely following. Cyprus and Portugal in the EU and again Iceland within EFTA lead percentage growth of diesel trucks YTD 2022-2023.
But when it comes to percentage growth YTD 2022-2023 for petrol- or gasoline-run commercial vehicles, there is just a slight uptick for vans and almost none for trucks. Portugal and Luxembourg lead the EU in petrol van growth while only Norway within EFTA made some slight growth among petrol trucks.
Electrically Chargeable Vans (battery electric and plug-in hybrids) YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Hybrid Electric Vans (full and mild hybrids) YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Fuel-cell EVs, NGVs, LPG, E85/ethanol, other fuels YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Petrol/Gasoline Vans YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Diesel Vans YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
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Electrically Chargeable Trucks (battery electric and plug-in hybrids) YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Hybrid Electric Trucks (full+mild hybrids) YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Fuel-cell EVs, NGVs, LPG, E85/ethanol, other fuels YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Petrol/Gasoline Trucks YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Diesel Trucks YTD 2022-2023 % Growth
Vans 2022-2023
New EU van sales surged 14.6% to nearly 1.5 million units, driven by strong performances in key EU markets. Italy led the way with a remarkable 22.7% growth, followed closely by Spain at 22%, Germany at 12.1%, and France at 8.9%.
In 2023, diesel continued to lead, with 1.2 million units registered, marking a 10.4% increase from 2022. However, its market share contracted from 85.7% in 2022 to 82.6% last year. Simultaneously, electrically chargeable vans are gaining traction, contributing to a gradual shift in market dynamics. Electric van sales surged by 56.8% in 2023, claiming a 7.4% market share, up from 5.4% in 2022. This shift was driven by substantial gains in key markets, including the Netherlands (+110.4%), Spain (+100.3%), and France (+76.7%).
Trucks 2022-2023
Similarly, the new EU truck registrations grew by a substantial 16.3% to 346,986 units. Germany led the pack with 94,820 units sold, reflecting a significant 24.4% increase. Other major EU markets experienced double-digit growth, including Spain at 22.3%, Italy at 11.4%, and France at 11.3%.
Also in 2023, diesel continued to dominate the truck market, constituting 95.7% of new truck registrations. Solid growth of 15.4% was recorded in EU diesel truck sales, propelled by notable expansions in key markets, including Germany (+23.5%), Spain (+21.8%), and Italy (+12.3%). At the same time, new electric truck registrations experienced an impressive 234.1% growth, reaching 5,279 units. The Netherlands (+889.7%) and Germany (+169.8%) emerged as the primary drivers behind this remarkable growth, jointly contributing to over 60% of all EU electric truck sales. Electric trucks now represent 1.5% of the market, substantial progress from the previous year’s 0.8%.
Buses 2022-2023
New EU bus registrations grew by a remarkable 19.4% compared to 2022, totaling 32,593 units. Looking at major EU markets, Italy and Spain experienced a noteworthy 56.2% growth. The largest and second-largest bus markets, Germany and France, grew by a solid 12.5% and 4.1%, respectively.
Again in 2023, new EU electric bus registrations increased by 39.1% to 5,166 units, claiming a 15.9% market share. Spain led with an impressive 269.7% growth, followed by Italy (+253.4%) and Germany (+29.3%). Hybrid-electric buses also showed positive year-end figures, experiencing a 115.1% growth that nearly doubled market share from 7.1% to 12.8% compared to 2022. Noteworthy growth in the top three markets – France (+221.3%), Spain (+172.4%), and Germany (+37.5%) – contributed to this result. Despite the rising popularity of alternatively powered buses, diesel maintains the largest share at 62.3%, albeit down from 66.9% in 2022.