Global electric vehicle shipments up 79% YoY in Q1, Tesla leads: Report

With Tesla registering phenomenal growth over a year, the electric vehicle (EV) shipments grew 79 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in the first quarter of 2022 to reach 1.95 million units, says a new report.

According to market research firm Counterpoint, of these, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 73 per cent and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) for the rest.

"With EVs comprising just 12 per cent of the total passenger vehicle shipments during the first quarter of 2022, there is a lot of scope for expansion. Fresh players are entering the market to benefit from the opportunity," Senior Research Analyst Soumen Mandal, said in a statement.

"To counter new entrants, existing players are using leading-edge technologies to have improved battery, superior IVI system, and higher levels of ADAS in their EV models as major selling points," Mandal added.

Tesla is currently the global EV market leader. The company`s shipments grew 68 per cent YoY in the first quarter and are expected to cross 1.3 million units by the end of 2022.

BYD Auto emerged as China`s top EV seller during the first quarter. Its EV shipments increased by a whopping 433 per cent YoY to reach more than 0.28 million units.

China remained the market leader in EV shipments, followed by Europe and the US. China`s EV shipments increased 126 per cent YoY in the first quarter of 2022 to reach more than 1.14 million units from just 0.5 million units in the first quarter of 2021.