New Jersey Sees Record Increase in Plug-In Electric Vehicle Registration
August 14, 2017; Highland Park, NJ: The sale of electric vehicles is growing rapidly in New Jersey, with registration of model year 2016 plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) up 79% over 2015, according to a recent analysis by ChargEVC, a diverse coalition of organizations and companies that support growth of the electric vehicle market.
New Jersey now has over 10,000 PEVs on the road, 60% of which have been sold in the last two years. “Interest in these cars is growing,” notes Pam Frank, CEO of ChargEVC. “We expect this trend will continue as more affordable vehicles with longer range become available in the next 24-36 months. In fact, we are working hard to accelerate this trend since all of us in New Jersey will enjoy a wide variety of benefits with more of these vehicles on our roads.”
Accelerating electric vehicle adoption is good news for New Jersey. Displacing petroleum with electricity brings cleaner air and lower electricity rates.
The uptick in New Jersey sales is over twice as robust as already strong national sales: For the first half of 2017, US consumers bought 38% more plug-in electric vehicles than in the same period in 2016, even though automobile sales are down overall.
This accelerating growth in New Jersey echoes analysis from a variety of sources. ExxonMobil just increased their PEV forecast by 50%, and Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) raised their projections to almost six times higher than it was only a year ago. Also adjusting their expectations, Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) now projects that plug-in electric vehicles will account for nearly a third of new car sales by 2040. Similarly, major automakers predict that electric vehicles will represent between 20% and 30% of new car sales within the 2025-2030 timeframe.
Additional market development work is needed to sustain and accelerate this momentum. To that end, ChargEVC will shortly release a landmark study that quantifies and details the diverse benefits resulting from widespread electrification of cars in New Jersey. A roadmap will lay out the programs and policies needed to strengthen the emerging electric vehicle market in New Jersey, such as expanding vehicle charging infrastructure and increasing consumer awareness. The study and roadmap will be announced at a press event to be held on September 14, 2017 at the State House in Trenton, New Jersey. For updates on this event, visit chargevc.org.
ChargEVC worked with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which provided the raw data based on vehicle registrations, to complete this EV sales analysis. These statistics include full-scale vehicles with a plug (plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles) and do not include smaller neighborhood electric vehicles, natural gas fueled vehicles, or traditional hybrids (without a plug).
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About ChargEVC: Launched in October 2016, ChargEVC is a not-for-profit coalition of automotive retailers, electric utilities, technology companies, manufactures, local governments, and environmental, community and labor advocates working together to accelerate the transition to electrically fueled transportation in New Jersey. Visit www.chargevc.org to learn more about ChargEVC.
CONTACT ASHLEY LYNN CHRZASZCZ; 732-296-0770; info@chargevc.org