While Norway’s electric passenger car sector continues to thrive, the country’s electric commercial vehicle market is facing challenges, according to the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association (Norsk elbilforening). In 2024, the sale of electric trucks declined compared to the previous year, despite a slight increase in their overall market share.
By 2030, all new trucks registered in Norway must be electric or powered by biogas, but the sales figures for electric trucks in 2024 show the country is still far from meeting this ambitious target. Electric trucks accounted for 12.6% of all new trucks sold, a modest increase of 0.3 percentage points from 2023. When looking specifically at trucks over 12 tonnes, sales surged by 91%, with 371 heavy-duty electric trucks being sold in 2024. Volvo and Scania were the key contributors, with Volvo delivering 65% of the electric trucks and Scania supplying 18%. However, these gains still fall short in terms of overall electrification progress, highlighting the long road ahead for Norway’s road transport sector.
Electric transporters, meanwhile, faced even steeper challenges in 2024. Although the all-electric VW ID.Buzz Cargo became the best-selling model across all drive types, only 29.6% of new vans were electric—a decline of 1.3 percentage points from 2023. Christina Bu, Secretary General of the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association, emphasized that stronger policy measures are essential to accelerate the transition. “Now the alarm bells really need to start ringing among politicians. We need stronger instruments,” Bu said.
Despite these setbacks, the association remains optimistic for 2025, pointing to several initiatives aimed at boosting the adoption of electric trucks and vans. The growing network of electric truck charging stations and exemptions from tolls for electric trucks until 2030 could make them more attractive to hauliers. Additionally, a 1.2 billion Norwegian krona (around 102 million euros) subsidy program for electric truck purchases is being supported by the state-owned enterprise Enova. However, Bu remains cautious, expressing concern that these efforts may not have a significant impact on sales in 2025.
For electric vans, the association is calling for stronger policy measures to support the uptake of these vehicles. While the range of electric vans is no longer a limiting factor, Bu emphasized that price is the critical issue. The government is exploring options such as granting electric vans access to public transport lanes and increasing the tax on new fossil-fuel vans by around NOK 8,500. These measures, along with the VAT exemption for EVs extended until 2026, are intended to help level the playing field for electric vans. However, the association is pushing for more aggressive policies to ensure the successful electrification of the commercial vehicle market in Norway.
Source: elbil.no
