Sales of battery-electric vehicles surpassed diesel models in the European Union for the first time in history in June, reports the European automaker group, ACEA.
Though diesel-powered vehicles have been a mainstay on the continent for many years due to particularly high gas prices there, regulators have been trying to reduce their numbers in order to curb pollution.
New BEV registrations surged 66% to 158,252 for a 15.1% market share, up from 10.7% year-over-year and overtaking diesel for third place, ACEA said. In second place, hybrid-electric registrations increased 32.4% to 254,100 units, sales representing 24.3% of the market. Gas-powered vehicles remained the biggest slice, registrations rising 11% to more than 379,000 units, but their market share fell from 38.5% to 36.3%.
U.S. EV sales haven’t caught up with Europe’s, representing just 7% of the market. Consumers are wary of switching from gas-powered models due to EVs’ higher costs and to limited charging infrastructure across a sprawling country.
