IONIQ 5 becomes 4th-most sold EV in Norway in July

Hyundai Motor Co.’s first all-electric car IONIQ 5 is making a strong debut this year in Norway, the principal battlefield in Europe for global electric vehicle (EV) makers.

According to the American EV news outlet CleanTechnica on Aug. 6, Hyundai sold 429 units of IONIQ 5 in the country last month, closely behind Volkswagen’s ID.4 in third place with 439 units. The first and the second places were taken by Ford’s Mach-E with 891 units and Skoda’s Enyaq with 558.

Industry watchers note that the sales of IONIQ 5 in Norway are picking up faster than the original projections, especially considering that the model entered the market in late May. CleanTechnica also agreed in its report that IONIQ 5’s performance was noteworthy.

“Another notable Norwegian performance in July was the new Hyundai IONIQ 5, which was neck and neck with the Volkswagen ID.4 in sales volume. On sale for just over two months, it has quickly ramped to a volume that will soon put it inside the cumulative top 10,” said CleanTechnica.

Tesla’s Model 3 is leading cumulative year-to-date EV sales in Norway with 6,274 units, followed by Volkwagen’s ID.4 with 4,769 and Ford’s Mach-E with 3,607.  

Norway is a key battleground for the world’s automakers aspiring to take the lead in clean mobility, as EVs account for the vast majority of all vehicles sold in the country. In July this year, Norway sold 8,897 units of EVs that accounted for 84.7% of all cars sold during the month, growing sharply from 48.4% in July 2020. Diesel cars and gasoline cars took up 4.1% and 4.3%, respectively, of the total volume sold in July.

Analysts projected that Norway, the first country in the world where sales of EVs surpassed those of internal combustion vehicles, will likely remain a key testbed for the firms planning to launch greener vehicles in other European countries.

They added that the strong performance in Norway helps EV makers expand their presence first to other Scandinavian countries and later to greater Europe. China’s leading EV makers BYD and Nio also opened their first European sales branches in Norway. The country will ban the sales of internal combustion vehicles from 2025.

The analysts further noted that Europe’s tougher regulations in the sector, spearheaded by EU’s recent announcement of the “Fit for 55” legislation package, will accelerate the launch of other EVs by Hyundai Motor Group such as the Kia EV6 and the Genesis Electrified G80. The Fit for 55 initiative aims to reduce Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.

Car experts note that Hyundai IONIQ 5’s key competencies lie in its futuristic design, wide range of add-on options and faster charge time. IONIQ 5’s 800V rapid-charging battery pack means it needs only about 15 minutes to charge from 20% to 80%, compared to the 20-30 minutes needed by competitors in the market.

Write to Hyung-kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com
Daniel Cho edited this article.