In 2014, only seven new electric cars were registered in Romania, the threshold of 1,000 was exceeded five years later, and last year it exceeded 15,000. Electrics have more than 10% of the total new car market and three factors have led to such growth. What happened in other European countries?
Electric car on chargePhoto: Shutterstock
- As part of the European PULSE project, HotNews.ro together with partners from El Confidencial and EFSYN, two of the largest publications in Spain and Greece, analyzed how the electric vehicle market grew in each country and what measures the authorities introduced.
In the first years, electricity was not taken into account
11 years ago there were not even 50 electric cars (EVs) in Romania, today there are almost 50,000, including second-hand models brought from abroad.
In 2007, the first hybrid car, the Toyota Prius, was brought to Romania, and electric cars were to come soon, but in small numbers.
Since 2010, a lot has been talked and written about electric cars in Romania and their future, but they didn’t really become widespread until after 2020 and after the subsidies from the Rabla Plus program took effect. Until 5-6 years ago, charging stations were rare, and the first electric models brought to the country also had low autonomy (below 150 km), except for Tesla, which had very expensive, niche cars. Currently there are many models with a real autonomy of over 250 km.
In 2011 there were only two models for sale in Romania: Mitsubishi iMIEV and Citroen C-Zero which were produced in Japan by Mitsubishi. They were mini-class cars, the announced range was 130 km, and the price was about 36,000 euros. Towards the end of 2011, Renault brought two electric models to the country: the Fluence ZE sedan and the Kangoo ZE utility vehicle. It was clear from then on that the road for electrics would be a long one, for many, many years. And so it was.
The numbers are starting to rise and you can clearly see more cars on the streets
The market has advanced a lot compared to the early years: for example, the data from 2013 showed that 44 electric cars were registered, of which 28 were Renault Fluence ZE, which was not surprising, if we take into account that the French were testing such cars at the RTR technical center in Titu.
In 2011, the Nissan Leaf was the first all-electric model to receive the title of “European Car of the Year”. and by 2021 over 200,000 cars would be sold on the continent. The Leaf was for many years the best-selling electric model in the world, until it was dethroned in 2020 by the Tesla Model 3. The Leaf was only launched in 2018 in Romania and had very low sales.
Since 2016, charging stations have also started to be installed in the parking lots of some supermarkets, a very important moment. At first uploading was free, but it wasn’t going to stay that way and fees were introduced everywhere after 2017 and 2018, as is normal for any business.
The year 2016 was also essential because the first edition of the Rabla Plus program was held, which stimulated the purchase of purely electric cars. Only 39 pure electric cars were purchased through the program in the first year and 440 in 2017.
Big subsidies, numerous models and Dacia Spring
In 2018, 600 electric cars were registered in circulation. and in 2021 the total would be ten times higher. For several years, Romania had among the largest subsidies for electric car buyers, over 9,000 euros through Rabla Plus, and this helped the market. The subsidy was reduced to 5,100 euros for Rabla Plus 2024.
In 2023, a maximum ceiling of 75,000 euros was introduced for the purchase of a model with zero emissions. In 2024, the threshold was changed to 70,000 euros.
Without this large subsidy the market would not have grown much and probably would not have exceeded 10,000 cars/year. Another essential event was in 2021, when the Dacia Spring model, produced in China, was launched in Romania. Almost 20,000 Romanians got their Dacia Spring in these years, and the cost, through Rabla Plus, was 10,000 euros.
There are almost 50,000 electric cars on the streets and roads of Romania, of which 15,300 new ones arrived last year. Almost 40% of electric cars in Romania are Dacia Spring, and other models that are doing well are Tesla Model Y, Renault Zoe and Tesla Model 3.
Dacia Spring is produced at the plant in the city of Shiyan, Hubei province, in a plant that Renault owns together with Dongfeng Motor Group (China) and Nissan. The joint venture was formed in August 2017, with Dongfeng owning 50% of the shares, while Renault and Nissan each have 25%.
The electric market has also grown a lot due to the fact that dozens of new models have appeared, especially in the last two years, from small class cars to SUVs from various brands. Brands that 10 years ago didn’t even plan to launch electric cars have entered the market, and the next stage is the launch of electric cars under 25,000 euros, which will make large sales volumes.
How the electricity market grew in Romania and in the region
How many electric cars were registered in Romania in the period 2014-2023 (ACEA data):
- 2014: 7
- 2015: 24
- 2016: 74
- 2017: 188
- 2018: 605
- 2019: 1,506
- 2020: 2,837
- 2021: 6,342
- 2022: 11,638
- 2023: 15,368
Greece is growing strongly – tripling in the last year
What are other countries doing?
Greece recorded a record number of electric cars in 2023, EFSYN partners report, reaching 7,328 (5.45% of total new cars), compared to 2,959 registrations (2.81%) in 2022.
This increase is also due to some measures introduced by the Greek authorities. For natural persons, the subsidy rate for the purchase of an electric car is 30% (increased from 20% in the first program called “Moving Electric 1”) and the maximum amount is 8,000 euros, instead of 6,000 euros (in the previous program).
Giving up your old vehicle is rewarded with an extra €1,000, while buying a smart home charger is rewarded with €500. The benefit of 8,000 euros applies to several new electric models on the Greek market.
A large number of buyers interested in electric cars are not accepted by the platform for the subsidy of up to 8,000 euros in the “Moving Electric II” program, funds are given on demand, without a waiting list. At the same time, Transport Minister Christos Staikouras promises greater financial incentives in the third cycle being designed.
Only 20 electric taxis operate in Greece. The small number of charging points in the country (1,021 points in 2022) is the main reason why taxi owners avoid changing their cars to electric ones, although the state covers almost all the price difference.
Unfortunately, the purchase of an electric car remains a luxury for most Greeks, because despite all the subsidies that have been granted in Greece, the purchase cost is in some cases even double that of a conventional (petrol) car.
According to data from the Hellenic Association of Motor Vehicle Importers’ Representatives (AMVIR), hybrid vehicles are in high demand in Greece. The data for March 2024 shows an increase of almost 10% in the total number of hybrid cars in just one year.
Gasoline cars had a share of 42% in March, and hybrids, 37%. Greece has a low share of diesel (only 8% of the new car market). Full-electric and hybrid cars had a share of 9.9%.
Spain – 30-fold increase in just six years
Data from the General Directorate of Traffic in Spain, made available by partners at El Confidencial, show a significant increase in the number of electric cars registered year-on-year:
- 2016 – 6,802 electric vehicles (0.03% of the total market)
- 2018 – 24,428 (0.1%)
- 2020 – 78,216 (0.32%)
- 2022 – 205,719 (0.82)
According to ACEA data, 51,000 new electric cars were sold in Spain last year, while in 2018 the total was under 2,600, which is 20 times lower.
One of the challenges facing Spanish drivers stems from the fact that the number of new electric cars has not increased at the same pace as the installation of high-power charging points. According to data from the European Commission’s Trans-European Transport Network (TENtec), Spain currently has around 33,000 charging points and 8,777 new devices were commissioned in 2023.
Madrid is the Spanish region with the most electric cars and also the most fast charging stations. There are almost 15 electric cars per charger over 150 kw. Among the big cities it is worth mentioning the case of Zaragoza, a busy center for road routes. Zaragoza has 141 stations for 2,000 electrics. In Barcelona there are 22,000 zero-emission cars and only 77 fast charging stations.
In Spain, the national government has extended financial support through the MOVES III Plan, stimulating the purchase of electric cars with grants of up to €7,000. The government contributes €4,500 for electric cars that are purchased for less than €45,000, with an opportunity for a further €2,500 if the buyer gives up a vehicle more than seven years old. In addition, producers are obliged to complete this assistance scheme with a discount of 1,000 euros.
How new electric car registrations grew in the region (2018 vs 2023) Source ACEA
- Romania, 25 times increase, from 605, to 15,368 cars
- Austria, more than sevenfold increase, from 6,764 to 47,621 cars
- Poland increased by more than 25 times, from 620 to 17,078 cars
- Bulgaria, ninefold increase, from 194 to 1,818 cars
- Czech Republic, more than nine-fold increase, from 703 to 6,700 cars
- Slovakia, eightfold increase, from 293 to 2,346 cars.
- Total in EU 2018: 135,000
- EU total in 2023: 1.53 million
2024 brought declines
After many months of growth, registrations of new fully electric cars fell by 11% last month in the EU, while for the entire first quarter of the year the market is up by 4%.
In Romania, 660 electric cars were registered last month, a decrease of 36% compared to March 2023. After three months, the total for Romania was 3,400 cars (8% increase compared to Q1 2023).
In several European countries, the electricity market fell drastically in the first quarter, the champions of the decline being Croatia (-66%), Latvia (-38%) and Finland (-28%). The biggest numerical decrease was in Germany (-13,500 cars) and the biggest increase was in France (15,000 cars).
What happened in the countries of the region in the first three months? Hungary increased by 39%, Bulgaria decreased by 13%, and Poland and the Czech Republic remained roughly at the 2023 level.
- This article was produced as part of the PULSE project, a European initiative to promote cross-border journalistic partnerships, funded by the European Commission. HotNews.ro collaborates in the project with other prestigious publications from Europe including Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland), Der Standard- Austria, El Confidencial- Spain, Il Sole 24- Italy, Delfi- Lithuania, Denik Referendum- Czech Republic, EFSYN- Greece, HVG- Hungary, Mediapool- Bulgaria.
