Global electric vehicle (EV) sales are expected to exceed 20 million units in 2025, accounting for more than one in four new cars sold worldwide. But South Africa, despite recording year-on-year growth in EV uptake and infrastructure expansion, continues to trail in local manufacturing.
Global EV sales reached 17 million in 2024, pushing market share above 20% for the first time, reports the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Global EV Outlook 2025. Growth continued into early 2025 with sales up 35% year-on-year in the first quarter. Mature markets like China, Europe and the United States remain dominant. However, there has been rapid acceleration across emerging economies, the report says.
The IEA credits the trend to lower battery and vehicle costs, more affordable models – particularly from China – and strong policy support. In Ethiopia, a ban on new petrol and diesel vehicle imports in early 2024 has reportedly led to the deployment of 100 000 EVs.
South Africa has made progress in vehicle adoption and charging infrastructure roll-out but the country risks falling behind as export markets tighten emissions regulations, says Hiten Parmar, Executive Director of The Electric Mission, a not-for-profit organisation based in South Africa, focused on advancing sustainable mobility and energy systems in Africa. “South Africa’s EV market has seen year-on-year growth in sales over recent years with expanded model offerings being introduced every quarter. Public charging infrastructure has expanded across the country by multiple service providers, which manages the associated risks of sole operators across a national network.
“However, South Africa’s automotive manufacturing industry is yet to start producing battery electric vehicles. Governments across Africa need to implement fuel efficiency and vehicle emissions standards to support the transition to new energy vehicles or else Africa risks being a market of exponentially increasing emissions,” Parmar says.
The IEA forecasts that, by 2030, over 40% of global car sales will be electric. China could reach 80%, Europe nearly 60% and Southeast Asia 25%. Battery production capacity is also expanding with global output projected to double by 2030 led by Chinese, Korean and Japanese firms. The report also highlights a near-doubling in electric truck sales in 2024 although this market share remains below 2%.
