More than 1 in 5 cars sold globally this year is expected to be electric, with surging demand projected over the next decade, says a new International Energy Agency (IEA) report.

Rising EV sales are set to remake the global auto industry and significantly reduce oil consumption for road transport, according to the new edition of the IEA’s annual Global EV Outlook, released today. 

The latest IEA Outlook report asserts that global EV sales are set to remain “robust” in 2024, reaching around 17 million by the end of the year. In Q1, sales grew by about 25% year-over-year – similar to the growth rate seen in the same period a year earlier but from a larger base. The number of EVs sold globally in Q1 2024 is roughly equivalent to that in all of 2020. 

In 2024, electric car sales in China are projected to jump to about 10 million, accounting for about  45% of all car sales in the country. In the US, roughly 1 in 9 cars sold are projected to be electric. In Europe, despite a generally weak outlook for passenger car sales and the phase-out of EV subsidies in some countries, EVs are still set to represent about 1 in 4 cars sold.

This growth builds on a record-breaking 2023. Last year, global electric car sales soared by 35% to  almost 14 million. While demand remained largely concentrated in China, Europe, and the US, growth also picked up in some emerging markets such as Vietnam and Thailand, where electric cars accounted for 15% and 10%, respectively, of all cars sold.

IEA executive director Fatih Birol said:

The continued momentum behind electric cars is clear in our data, although it is stronger in some markets than others. Rather than tapering off, the global EV revolution appears to be gearing up for a new phase of growth.

The wave of investment in battery manufacturing suggests the EV supply chain is advancing to meet automakers’ ambitious plans for expansion. As a result, the share of EVs on the roads is expected to continue to climb rapidly. Based on today’s policy settings alone, almost 1 in 3 cars on the roads in China by 2030 is set to be electric, and almost 1 in 5 in both the United States and European Union.

This shift will have major ramifications for both the auto industry and the energy sector.

In China, more than 60% of electric cars sold in 2023 were already less expensive to buy than gas cars. In the US and Europe, the gas cars’ prices remained cheaper on average, though intensifying market competition and improving battery technologies are expected to reduce prices in the coming years. Growing electric car exports from Chinese automakers, which accounted for more than half of all electric car sales in 2023, could add to downward pressure on purchase prices.

According to the IEA’s report, ensuring that the availability of public charging keeps pace with EV sales is crucial for continued growth. The number of public charging points installed globally was up 40% in 2023 relative to 2022, and DC fast charger growth outpaced that of Level 1 and 2 chargers.

However, to meet a level of EV deployment in line with the pledges made by governments, the IEA says charging networks need to grow sixfold by 2035. At the same time, policy support and careful planning are essential to make sure greater demand for electricity from charging doesn’t overstretch grids.

Read more: These are the best-selling used EVs – and what’s being traded in for them

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In honor of Earth Day, Rivian has introduced a new “Electric Upgrade” offer, where new customers can take advantage of varying discounts on an R1S or R1T EV for trading in certain combustion models. There are other terms to qualify; learn more below.

Take advantage of big Rivian discounts, now through June

According to Rivian, it has introduced a new demand lever today that offers discounts to new qualifying purchasers/lessees who take delivery of a new R1 EV before June 30, 2024. In addition to gaining a discount on an R1 purchase or lease, as outlined below, customers can also qualify for one year of complementary charging on the Rivian Adventure Network (RAN).

Here’s how the discounts break down for R1 customers in the US and Canada:

• R1T Standard, Standard+ Pack – $3,000 / $4,500 CAD 
• R1T Large Pack – $4,000 / $6,000 CAD 
• R1T Max Pack – $5,000 / $7,500 CAD 
• R1S Large Pack – $1,000 / $1,500 CAD 

Additional terms per Rivian:

Any Rivian vehicle model and pack combination not listed above is ineligible for this offer.  Eligible Rivian vehicle configurations must be selected and purchased or leased through Rivian’s online Shop.  $1,000 non-refundable deposit is required to reserve your configuration through Shop.  Discount will be applied as part of your Rivian R1 vehicle transaction

Rivian points out that in order for R1 purchasers/lessees to qualify for the discounts above, they must trade in a combustion vehicle, but not just any gas car. It has to be one of the following

• Audi:
  • Q5, Q7, Q8 – 2018 or newer
• BMW:
  • X3, X5, X7 – 2018 or newer
• Ford:
  • F-150, Explorer, Expedition, Bronco (excluding Bronco Sport) – 2018 or newer
• Jeep:
  • Grand Cherokee, Wrangler, Gladiator – 2018 or newer
• Toyota:
  • Tacoma, Tundra, Highlander, 4Runner – 2018 or newer

This is a savvy move by Rivian as it is not only getting combustion vehicles off roads and replacing them with R1 EVs, but also taking in gas versions of some of its competitors. The offer is limited to one Rivian discount and one year of complimentary charging per eligible combustion vehicle trade-in.

Qualifying purchasers/lessees must take their R1 delivery between April 22, 2024 and June 30, 2024. Learn more here.

Tesla has used a new Texas state law to exempt its Austin gigafactory from Austin’s environmental regulations, as reported by Austin Business Journal.

Tesla’s Texas gigafactory is commonly referred to as being in Austin, but it is actually situated not far outside the city’s official borders.

This is technically part of Austin’s “extraterritorial jurisdiction” (ETJ) an area around the city which doesn’t technically belong to the city, but which the city can still exercise some control over the development of.

Due to the large amount of unincorporated land in Texas, and its growing population causing cities to tend to sprawl outward, it is prudent for some cities to help plan the areas immediately outside their limits, so that infrastructure can be compatible if the city later grows to encompass those areas. This is why Texas and some other Western states have ETJ laws.

But, last year, the Texas legislature passed a law, SB 2038, allowing developments to remove themselves from these ETJs relatively easily.

Earlier this year, Tesla filed a petition to remove itself from Austin’s ETJ, and that petition was accepted, according to Austin Business Journal.

The law has been challenged by several cities in Texas, though Austin is not one of the cities opposing it.

Tesla’s removal from the ETJ allows it to skirt Austin’s environmental regulations, particularly over regulation of water quality and flooding issues, according to an Austin spokesperson interviewed by Austin Business Journal.

Both of these would be important at the gigafactory site, since the property encompasses 2,100 acres and runs directly along the Colorado River, just after it runs through Austin’s center.

Tesla itself has pointed out the ecological importance of its location, as when the site was first selected, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the area would be an “ecological paradise.” That promised ecological paradise has not yet materialized, but the company did present a plan to create a 120-acre public space alongside the river last October.

Tesla is also building something called a “Giga Water Loop” at the site, but we don’t actually know much more than that about what it is.

Water issues have been in focus at other Tesla locations, particularly its gigafactory in Grünheide,outside Berlin, Germany. While some opposition to the factory has come from front groups for the oil industry, there have also been criminal allegations by legitimate environmental groups related to Tesla’s management of its water usage.

The issues have rankled Tesla’s relationship with the local community in Grünheide, with locals voting down expansion of the factory and, in a crazier and much less productive move, resulting in sabotage that led to the factory’s temporary shutdown.

In Germany, Tesla has responded to local issues by attempting to manage its water use better, and by replanting trees to make up for the site’s encroachment into a managed forest area nearby.

But now, in Texas, it seems like Tesla would rather not have to deal with that sort of thing at all (though, as usual, Tesla did not comment on why they took this move). By exempting itself from Austin’s regulations, there will be less oversight of what sort of water usage or discharge the site has, and whether that might affect other parts of the river.

And yet, Tesla has still benefitted from its proximity to Austin, as the city extended utility connections to the site during the construction process. Austin did this without first annexing the area, as at the time, Texas law was clear that the area was in the city’s ETJ.

Now due to changing Texas law, Tesla gets to keep those benefits, but has exempted itself from environmental oversight, despite making many environmental claims about the site in question.