Electric cars capture two-thirds of Norway auto market

OSLO: Electric cars made up over two-thirds of the Norway car market with a sharp rise of 48% in sales last year, making Tesla the top-selling brand.

Seeking to become the first nation to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2025, oil-producing Norway exempts battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from taxes imposed on rivals using internal combustion engines (ICE).

Tesla grabbed an 11.5% share of the overall car market, making it the No. 1 brand for the first time on a full-year basis ahead of Germany’s Volkswagen with 9.4%.

The United States automaker on Sunday reported record quarterly deliveries that far exceeded Wall Street estimates, riding out global chip shortages as it ramped up China production.

The Tesla Model 3 was the single most popular model of the year ahead of Toyota’s (7203.T) hybrid RAV4, the sole car among the top 10 with an ICE, and Volkswagen’s electric ID.4 in the third place.