The pace of electric vehicle (EV) sales is picking up around the world. In fact, in 2024, electric car sales surpassed 17 million worldwide, increasing by more than 25% from 2023. The global stock of EVs is currently around 58 million vehicles and the penetration of EVs into the global market has displaced over 1 million barrels per day of oil consumption in 2024.
China is the country leading the world in EV sales and the Chinese market accounted for almost two thirds of EV sales in 2024 (65%). China is the world’s biggest car market. According to the IEA’s Global EV Outlook, at this point in time almost half of China’s car sales were electric and now one in ten cars on the road in China is now electric.
This expansion in China is driven by strong government support, increasing price competitiveness, and evolving consumer preferences. The IEA report indicated that China’s electric car market benefitted from the introduction of a trade-in scheme in April 2024. The scheme, which is part of a wider economic stimulus package, applies to the purchase of conventional and electric cars alike, but with different levels of financial support. It offers USD$2,750 for consumers that replace an older vehicle (conventional or electric) with a new electric car, and USD$2,050 for replacement with a new conventional vehicle. In 2024, about 6.6 million consumers applied for the incentive, 60% of whom bought an electric car. As such, more than one-third of the over 11 million new electric car sales in the country benefitted from this incentive.
China also has several major EV manufacturers, including BYD, SAIC, Geely, Great Wall Motor (GWM) Company and GAC. Some of these Chinese companies have vehicles available in T&T at the moment, in particular BYD, GWM and GAC. Several other manufacturers from around the world have EV models making their way to T&T including BMW, Mini, Volvo, Porsche, Nissan and Hyundai.
A recent article in the T&T Guardian highlights a similar growth pattern for EV sales in Trinidad and Tobago. The article alludes to the changing attitude to EVs. This is clear since from 2023 to 2024 new EV sales have grown by more than 100% in T&T. In T&T there is also a growing market for foreign-used EVs.
EVs are very suitable for small islands like Trinidad & Tobago, where people rarely drive long distances. Newer EVs will often have ranges in excess of 400 km: meaning you could drive from Toco to Icacos and back on a single charge. In Trinidad & Tobago EVs are even more attractive because of the very competitive electricity prices. Many people also park their vehicles in their own driveways overnight, where they can easily charge from their own electricity supply. Despite this, there are more and more public charging stations popping up in locations around T&T making it even more convenient to own and operate an EV in T&T.
One of te considerations of large-scale adoption of EVs is of course the power source which is being used to generate electricity – which in turn powers the vehicle. While the EV itself generates no emissions, if the electricity it uses is generated from fossil fuels, then there will be greenhouse gas emissions associated with the electricity. However, a large power station linked by wires and batteries to individual electric motors is a far more efficient mechanism to generate the energy to move a car, compared to the same number of individual internal combustion engines burning gasoline and diesel (which itself has to be delivered to retail gas stations).
A recent study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) found that on average in Europe, EVs produce 73% less life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions than their gasoline counterparts (based on the mix of electricity generation in the European grid).
In T&T, almost all of the electricity produced is generated using natural gas, the cleanest of the fossil fuels. As more renewables are added to the grid over time, the emissions associated with transport via electric vehicles will also fall.
A final benefit of EVs is that they do not emit any of the harmful roadside pollutants associated with gasoline and diesel engines. This has a positive impact on the health of the population, especially people living near major highways. One of the reasons China has been so keen to adopt EVs is the positive impact on urban air pollution.