EV Adoption Spreads With 1 in 4 Globally ‘Very Likely’ to Buy EV as Next Car

(Bloomberg) -- The number of consumers likely to buy an electric vehicle more than doubled over the past two years as prices fell, driving ranges increased and charging stations proliferated, though the total remains a small share of all auto customers.

About a fourth of potential consumers globally described themselves as “very likely” to make a battery-powered car their next vehicle, AlixPartners said Wednesday in the latest International Electric Vehicles Consumer Sentiment Survey report. That’s up from 11% two years ago.

Adoption of electric vehicles has been growing globally as the choice of models increases and prices decline. The automakers say further government support and funding will be crucial for the uptake to grow.

For the survey, AlixPartners queried more than 8,000 consumers in late August across countries accounting for 85% of the global EV passenger-car market last year.

In the U.S., 19% of 2,054 respondents surveyed were likely to go all electric, up from just 5% in 2019. In China, the world’s largest market for electric cars, half of all respondents called themselves believers, up from 34% in the prior survey.

The range of EVs continues to be top-of-mind for consumers globally, with 42% of all respondents putting it as their biggest concern, down from 56% in 2019. The survey also found potential buyers to be more willing to choose a plug-in if the price premium continues to shrink.

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