Electric cars 56% of Norwegian auto sales

[EatenByLimestone]

56% of Norway's new cars had a plug in 2019, Tesla Model 3 overall best-seller

42% of Norway's car sales were pure battery electric, and almost 14% were plug-in hybrid. Tesla Model 3 was the best-selling car, with 11% of the market.

www.google.com

 

[woodgeek]

Its interesting. They have punitive taxes on ICE cars, and a tax abatement on EVs....they have been the adoption leaders for many years. But a small (population) country, and mostly urban in the south with a mild (Southern New England-ish) climate.

Neighboring Sweden decided to bet on Ethanol (and Cellulosic Ethanol) several years ago. Wonder how that is going for them....

In other news Tesla should ship its one millionth car in a couple months.

 

[Sawset]

98% of Norway electric power generation is hydro electric. Most use electric for heat, with wood as backup. Nice model to emulate, but far from similar.

 

[begreen]

Besides tax breaks, they have long term incentives for electrics too, including no bridge tolls, ferry fees, free parking, etc.

 

[semipro]

98% of Norway electric power generation is hydro electric. Most use electric for heat, with wood as backup. Nice model to emulate, but far from similar.

Sounds like Canada.

 

[ABMax24]

Sounds like Canada.

I wish.

Hydro-electric power only makes up the majority of electricity production in British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec. The rest of the provinces generate the bulk of their power from coal, natural gas, and in the case of Ontario Nuclear. There are other renewables gaining traction predominantly wind and lately solar, but these are minor sources overall.

Most heating isn't done by wood either, the western provinces and Ontario mostly heat with natural gas, with a few spotty places uses propane, electric or wood. Out east heating mostly comes from propane, fuel oil, electric or wood, with a few places having natural gas.

 

[peakbagger]

Norway also has the luxury that they can fund their government with North Sea oil drilling. They may not be burning the fossil fuel in their country but they are pumping it so that others can do so. Unlike the many kleptocracies around the world, they have taken the profits from drilling for oil and put them in a long term sovereign wealth fund managed for the residents of the country. It has a small population base and a big cash flow making it easy to fund environmental projects. Compare that with many of the other major oil producing countries where oil wealth is concentrated on a small ruling class that grab the profits and then have to provide enough social benefits to keep the citizens happy. In the US the system hands over the profits from resource extraction to businesses to spend with only a small contribution to a normally underfunded Land Water Conservation Fund to offset the depletion of one time assets. That in theory is good all us investors but not so good for those who arent.

Be aware when praising hydro, its has its pros and cons. There are some attempts to define different types of hydro as "green hydro" or "brown hydro" but fundamentally the ecosystems of rivers and lakes in the northern latitudes developed since the last glacial period about 13,000 years ago and anytime a hydro dam goes on a natural water system there are impacts. The only hydro that has minimal impact is pumped hydro where the storage ponds are man made. Norway predominantly uses ponded hydro using natural reservoirs, this varies the water levels unnaturally and the regional ecosystem is degraded. Its out of sight and out of mind but the impact still exists. The Atlantic Salmon on the east coast was virtually wiped out on major rivers by run of the river hydrodams and the only hope of restoration is to tear down hydro dams. Sure fish ladders and pump and truck mitigate some of the damage but its still significant. Much of the debate in New England regarding import of Hydro Quebec power(regarded as brown hydro due to extensive ponded storage) is if Mass and CT are just applying Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) to large scale and making it Not In My Country.