Mathilde Carlier
Research Expert covering transportation and logistics
Electric vehicles in Sweden - Statistics & facts
In March 2024, Swedish climate tech unicorn start-up Northvolt opened an electric car battery plant in Germany. The startup, which was the only European company among the five most highly valued climate tech unicorns in 2024, represents only one aspect of Sweden’s growing electric vehicle industry. Battery-electric car sales rose in the country in 2023, following a pattern of consecutive growth recorded since at least 2010. Sweden was the largest market in the Nordics for electric vehicles based on sales volume and among the countries with the highest market share of electric vehicles in Europe. However, while the country is taking active strides to decarbonize its transport sector, various challenges impact the EV market.
Concurrently, new plug-in hybrid electric vehicle registrations dropped in 2022 and 2023, following a different trend from battery-electric vehicles’ (BEVs) success. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which tended to have an average cost of ownership higher than BEVs, were only surpassed by all-electric cars based on fleet volume in 2023. While the propulsion type had lost popularity, Swedes still drove nearly 456.5 Scandinavian miles in a PHEV in 2023, making it the third fuel type by vehicle-miles traveled behind diesel and petrol.
The expanding Swedish electric vehicle market faces various hurdles to its growth, including but not limited to consumers’ perceptions of the end of the climate bonus and the development of its charging network. External factors, such as inflation and carmakers’ focus on larger, more premium EVs with higher costs of ownership, can further influence the market.
Small petrol cars remain cheaper than electric vehicles
In November 2022, the Swedish government rolled back its climate bonus program (Klimatbonus), which subsidized the purchase of electric cars in the country. New electric vehicle purchase incentives were perceived by 59 percent of drivers in Sweden to have a medium to high impact on their potential decision to drive a fully electric car. This consumer opinion is not without reason. While the cost of electric car ownership across 10 years tended to be lower than the cost of ownership of a petrol sport-utility vehicle across that same period, small petrol cars were the most affordable option for Swedish buyers.Concurrently, new plug-in hybrid electric vehicle registrations dropped in 2022 and 2023, following a different trend from battery-electric vehicles’ (BEVs) success. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which tended to have an average cost of ownership higher than BEVs, were only surpassed by all-electric cars based on fleet volume in 2023. While the propulsion type had lost popularity, Swedes still drove nearly 456.5 Scandinavian miles in a PHEV in 2023, making it the third fuel type by vehicle-miles traveled behind diesel and petrol.
The public charging network is focused on areas with high population density
Around 65 percent of company car drivers in Sweden who would not choose to own an electric car as their company vehicles mentioned the too few charging stations in the country as one of the reasons behind that choice. Sweden’s public charging infrastructure tended to be concentrated in counties with a higher population density and the largest electric vehicle fleet. Stockholm, which was the most densely populated county in Sweden, had around 832 public charging stations available as of July 2024. It was followed by Skåne and Västra Götaland, which also topped the population density and EV fleet rankings. This pattern can create disparities outside urban areas, where the charging network is sparser, and within urban areas, where the amount of charging points must meet the needs of a growing electric vehicle fleet as home charging can be less accessible.The expanding Swedish electric vehicle market faces various hurdles to its growth, including but not limited to consumers’ perceptions of the end of the climate bonus and the development of its charging network. External factors, such as inflation and carmakers’ focus on larger, more premium EVs with higher costs of ownership, can further influence the market.
