Electric car sales are increasing rapidly

Global EV sales increased by 53% year on year in 2022, reaching over 10.2 million units.

According to Counterpoint’s Global Passenger Electric Vehicle Model Sales Tracker, battery EVs accounted for 72% of all EV sales in Q4 2022, with plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVS) accounting for the remainder.

According to Research Analyst Abhik Mukherjee, EV sales reached an all-time high in Q4 2022, and total year sales might have surpassed 11 million if China had not had a surge of Covid-19 infections at the end of the year.

Despite China’s challenging condition in 2022, Chinese brands continued to flourish rapidly, with many extending into Europe, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.

BYD, a Chinese manufacturer, had the highest sales share in Q4 2022 (19.8%), followed by Elon Musk’s Tesla (12.1%).

The Model Y, however, was the best-selling EV internationally, followed by the BYD Song.

In Q4 2022, BYD and Wuling had seven of the top ten best-selling EV models, illustrating China’s EV penetration.

According to Counterpoint, EV sales are estimated to reach approximately 17 million units by 2023.

“This year, the US EV sales will see a boost as models become slightly more affordable due to the $7,500 tax credit. The end of the purchase subsidy in China might push EV manufacturers to increase their prices… But these price hikes are unlikely to affect EV sales in one of the most matured EV markets.” senior analyst Soumen Mandal said.

Lithium costs are also predicted to fall in the second half of 2023, which would boost EVs.

South Africa’s Electric Vehicle Market

South Africa’s electric car sector is off to a strong start in 2022.

“In the first three months of 2022, South Africa sold over 1,400 electric vehicles. This is more than 2020 and 2021 combined,” said the chief executive of MasterDrive, Eugene Herbert.

Notwithstanding the encouraging sales, Herbert warned that EV adoption in South Africa faces significant difficulties.

South Africa is experiencing an energy crisis and a dearth of charging stations along long-distance roadways, with many South African motorists afraid that EVs would not be able to travel long distances.

Moreover, EVs are prohibitively costly, with the lowest model, the Mini Cooper SE, costing R742,000.

Eskom stated that it will play an important role in the implementation of electric cars in South Africa.

The beleaguered utility hopes to replace its entire fleet of conventional cars with electric vehicles by 2040.

It also stated that the residential time-of-use (ToU) pricing rate has been filed for approval to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa).

EV owners would save significantly while charging their vehicles during off-peak and regular hours, promoting EV adoption in South Africa.