Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Battery-electric vehicle (BEV) sales in the European Union surged 26.1% in February compared to the same month last year, even as overall new car registrations fell by 3.1%, according to data published Tuesday by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).
In the first two months of 2025, BEV sales across the EU jumped 28.4% to 255,489 units to a market share of 15.2%. Germany (+41%), Belgium (+38%), and the Netherlands (+25%) posted the largest increases.
Total new car registrations in the EU fell 3% year-to-date while hybrid-electric cars registrations rose 18.7% in the first two months of the year. The segment reached 594,059 units, or 35.2% of the EU market share.
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), however, continued to lose momentum. Registrations dropped 5% year-to-date to 124,947 units and account now for just 7.4% of EU car sales.
On a year-over-year basis, February saw a 23.7% increase in BEV registrations and a 19% rise in hybrids, while PHEVs declined 1.4%.
Tesla sold 16,888 vehicles in the EU, UK, and European Free Trade Association countries in February, down 42.6% from 28,182 units registered a year ago.
The decline follows a weak January as the company continues the production transition to a refreshed Model Y — the world’s best-selling car in 2024. CEO Elon Musk’s involvement in U.S. politics has also been affecting the brand’s demand, according to several Wall Street analysts.
In China, Tesla registered last week its best sales performance of the year with over 17,000 units insured.
Despite last year’s overall recovery in European car sales — up 0.8% to 10.6 million vehicles — BEV market share declined slightly to 13.6% in 2024 from 14.6% the previous year. Plug-in hybrid registrations fell 6.8% over the same period.
The association opposed the European tariffs on China-made fully electric models last year and reiterated the critical role of free and fair trade in enabling a globally competitive European automotive industry.