By Johanna Gardener •
Published: 23 Oct 2024 • 0:02
• 2 minutes read
In a world becoming increasingly more eco-friendly, Spain does not appear to be keeping the pace as the move from petrol-powered vehicles to electric vehicles appears to be sluggish.
According to figures, the much-anticipated increased sales of electric or EV vehicles are not going to plan in Spain and experts are beginning to scrutinize the reasons for why this might be. Across Europe, sales of electric vehicles have been growing. In 2023, plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles constituted 26% of car purchases and registrations in France, 31% in Portugal but…only 12% in Spain. This lag in the market has raised concern as Laura Gonçalves, General Director of Powerdot, one of Spain’s leading charging service providers highlighted. These fairly stagnant sales can also be reflected in a drop in electric car registrations in Spain. In June 2024, EV sales fell by almost 3% compared with the year before. Despite these rather discouraging statistics, Gonçalves did draw attention to some positive signs: by the end of the first half of 2024, EV registrations increased by 1.2% and 25,864 EV vehicles were sold.
Why is Spain slower in its adoption of electric vehicles?
Experts are trying to join the dots as to why this might be the case. They have outlined several factors which may be responsible. Strangely, although Spain’s infrastructure has greatly improved and electric vehicle promotion is significant, the large-scale transformation in Spain appears not to be catching on. Despite the positive attributes of EVs, it would seem that people may be put off by Spain’s more cautious adoption of new and expensive technologies including the replacement of old infrastructure. Having said this, it would not be fair to negate Spain’s implementation of public charging networks around the country. According to the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (ANFAC), 32,400 public charging points can be found across the country, an encouraging 60% increase from 2023.
Spanish government offers incentives to purchase electric vehicles
Currently, there are 150,000 electric cars on Spain’s roads as well as 225,000 hybrid vehicles. Leading city, Madrid, takes the title for most EV´s with 40,000 electric cars, followed by Catalonia (30,000), Andalucia (20,000), and Valencia (15,000). These differences mirror the distinct policies in regional areas, which affect the rates of acclimatisation. Nationally, there have been incentives and tax benefits offered by the government to encourage purchase of electric vehicles including the Plan Moves.
While Spain lags behind other European countries in the adoption of electric vehicles, there is optimism that increased government initiatives, better public education, and heightened awareness of the environmental and economic benefits will help drive change. As these efforts continue, the hope is that more Spaniards will embrace eco-friendly transportation, helping the country transition towards a greener future in line with global trends.
Sign up for personalised news
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our
Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Written by
Johanna Gardener
Originally from Manchester, UK and with a degree in English with Modern Foreign Languages, she has been a permanent resident in Spain for the past 12 years. Many of these years, she has spent working as a secondary school teacher, as well as in journalism, editing and marketing. She currently lives in the historic centre of Malaga, where she enjoys writing, walking and animals.
Leave a comment Cancel reply
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Comment for robots
Known as the PEOPLE’S PAPER, Euro Weekly News is the leading English language newspaper in Spain. And it’s FREE!
Covering the Almeria, Axarquia, Costa Blanca North, Costa Blanca South, Costa del Sol , Costa Calida, Mallorca and beyond, EWN supports and inspires the individuals, neighbourhoods, and communities we serve, by delivering news with a social conscience. Whether it’s local news in Spain, UK news or international stories, we are proud to be the voice for the expat communities who now call Spain home.
With around half a million print readers a week and over 1.5 million web views per month, EWN has the biggest readership of any English language newspaper in Spain. The paper prints over 150 news stories a week with many hundreds more on the web – no one else even comes close.
Our publication has won numerous awards over the last 25 years including Best Free Newspaper of the Year (Premios AEEPP), Company of the Year (Costa del Sol Business Awards) and Collaboration with Foreigners honours (Mijas Town Hall). All of this comes at ZERO cost to our readers. All our print and online content always has been and always will be FREE OF CHARGE.
Sign up for personalised news
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Close
