Electric vehicle sales were so popular in Sweden that year that the financial incentives to encourage adoption were almost exhausted, leading the local transport authority to suspend payments.
An explosive surge in electric vehicle sales resulted in claims to the 70,000 Swedish kroner (approximately 11,000 AUD) discount drying up the nearly 3 billion kroner (460 million AUD) fund in August.
That’s two months earlier than 2020, when the government set aside just 1.8 billion kroner (A $ 286 million) before having to top up its coffers.
Scandinavian countries are pioneers in the transition to electromobility. Norway, with three decades of policies aimed at encouraging people to buy electric vehicles, is the undisputed world leader with more than eight in ten electric cars sold.
But sales in Sweden spiked in June, with battery electric cars making up one in four cars and pluggable cars making up half of all sales overall.
Source: Norwegian Electric Car Association
Until the regulation was suspended, anyone who bought a new car in Sweden with CO2 emissions of less than 60 g / km was entitled to a climate bonus. Buyers of all-electric cars were entitled to the entire pot of 70,000 kroner, while buyers of plug-in hybrids that met the emission criterion could be reimbursed up to 45,000 kroner.
Until the beginning of April 2021, the upper limit of the EV bonus was 60,000 crowns (approx. 9,500 AUD). After the bonus increased, electric vehicle sales increased.
“A completely different climate has developed in the media around electric cars,” said Magnus Johansson, head of the Electric car Sweden, said about the increased electric car sales in Sweden according to elbil.no.
“We see that there is an increase, not only in the cities but also in the districts, ”said Johansson.
The question now is what happens to buyers who have bought an electric car but have not yet been able to claim their bonus.
“We currently have no information about new budget decisions, but when we receive new grants, we will resume work on the disbursement of climate bonuses. Anyone who has already submitted an application remains in the queue“, Said Mats Einarsson from the Swedish Tourist Board in a press release.
Bridie Schmidt is a senior reporter for The Driven, the sister company of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018 and is very interested in the role that emission-free transport must play for sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organizer of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model 3 and can rent it at evee.com.au.