Sales of most fuels in Norway declined last year for the first time in almost a decade, after seven years with three-digit annual increases in EV sales. As of March, electric vehicles made up 37 percent of new car sales. And all this was made possible by a government that decided to go all-in on electric cars, providing buyers with generous subsidies and tax breaks to stimulate adoption.
From 2025 onwards, this government wants all new cars sold in Norway to be electric. Against the background of this target, EV adoption is actually going more slowly than it should, despite all the incentives. There are just seven years left until that date and almost two-thirds of cars on Norway’s roads are non-electric. But let’s say adoption will continue to increase at the current rate, and that by 2025 zero ICE cars will be sold in Norway. Will this reduce the country’s carbon footprint? Will the grid cope?
Norway has a very good reputation in green circles, not just because of electric cars but because of its genuine efforts to fight climate change with all means available to it. Among those efforts is a population of just 5.4 million, which automatically means a smaller carbon footprint than more populous neighbors. It also has lots of rivers, which means access to hydropower capacity that others don’t have. In the meantime, Norway is a major exporter of oil and gas.