Flemish premium drives surge in electric car registrations
The number of registrations of electric cars, both new and used, by private individuals in Belgium more than doubled in February compared to the same month last year, mobility federation Traxio reported on Wednesday. According to the association, the increase is mainly due to the Flemish premium for electric cars.
The vast majority (1,201) of new electric cars were registered in Flanders, which corresponds to a market share of 81.8 per cent. Registrations of second-hand electric cars by private individuals in Flanders increased last month at the same rate as last year, to 543.
The increase in the number of registrations is notable, considering that a survey in January showed that the appetite for electric cars among the Belgian population appears to be waning. According to the survey, commissioned by BNP Paribas Fortis, around 42 per cent of households say they would never consider switching to an electric or hybrid vehicle, an increase of 7 per cent compared to 2023. Some 37 per cent want to switch to an electric or hybrid car by 2029, compared to 47 per cent a year ago.
Premium applications
The Flemish government recently announced an initiative to grant a 5,000-euro premium to people who buy an electric car for less than 40,000 euros. On 22 February, the Flemish government announced that it had already received 3,073 applications for the premium since 12 February, for a total of around 15 million euros.
Overall, used car registrations rose by 13.5 per cent in February compared to the same month last year. A total of 60,355 used cars were registered. Petrol cars still account for 54.8 per cent of the used car market, while the share of diesel cars continues to fall to 31.6 per cent. Hybrid and electric cars account for 13 per cent.
Interest in new cars also remains strong. Last month the number of registrations rose by almost 10 per cent to 43,723. As in January, Volkswagen and BMW were the best-selling brands of used cars, ahead of Mercedes, Opel and Peugeot.
#FlandersNewsService | © PHOTO JOHN THYS / AFP
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