Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) share of total car sales hit a record 92.1 per cent in January, according to the Norwegian Road Federation. By far the highest percentage in the world, putting Norway on track to be the first country to have more electric vehicles on the road than fossil-fuel powered cars.
The number of BEVs on Norway’s roads is on track to overtake petrol cars by the end of this year or in early 2025, a first for any country, according to calculations by Reuters and analysts. The shift has been driven by generous incentives, afforded in part thanks to Norway’s huge oil and gas wealth.
But what really kick-started the nation on the path was a brilliant, anarchic stunt. In 1995, Morten Harket (the lead singer of the 1980s band A-ha) and the head of Bellona, the Norwegian environmental group, got into a converted electric Fiat they had imported and set off on what can only be described as an anarchic road trip.
They drove around Oslo parking illegally as often as possible, refusing to pay road tolls, and ignoring all the penalty notices they received - until, finally, the authorities seized their car and auctioned it off to cover the fines.
This imaginative stunt attracted huge media attention and much public debate. Resulting, soon after, with the government announcing that electric vehicles were to become exempt from road tolls. This was just one of a slew of incentives that have, over the years, helped make Norway the country with the world’s highest per capita electric vehicle ownership.
Fast forward to today and the Nordic country of 5.5 million people aims to become the first nation to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars – by 2025. Nine out of 10 new cars sold at the start of this year have been BEVs.
If more countries follow Norway’s lead, demand for oil worldwide could peak earlier than envisaged. The International Energy Agency sees that peak before 2030, with cars and vans accounting for more than 25 per cent of oil demand.
Don't remember A-ha or have never heard of them? Or would like to refresh your memory of their biggest hit? Here's Cry Wolf from 1986...