- Title: After Tesla's record year in Norway, rivals gear up for 2020
- Date: 3rd January 2020
- Summary: VARIOUS OF PEOPLE LOOKING AT MUSTANG (SOUNDBITE) (English) FORD NORWAY MANAGING DIRECTOR, PER GUNNAR BERG, SAYING: "It's very important for Ford to have an electric vehicle in Norway, so judging from the interest, this will be a big success in Norway." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE LOOKING AT MUSTANG
- Embargoed: 17th January 2020 11:20
- Keywords: Mustang Polestar Tesla climate change demand electric cars sales
- Location: OSLO AND LILLESTROM, NORWAY
- City: OSLO AND LILLESTROM, NORWAY
- Country: Norway
- Topics: Environment
- Reuters ID: LVA002BUMCWB1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The sale of new electric cars in Norway rose by 30.9% last year, amid soaring demand for Tesla Inc.'s vehicles, but the pioneering U.S. firm is set to face rising competition from rival auto makers in 2020.
Fully electric cars made up 42.4% of sales in the Nordic nation last year, a global record, rising from a 31.2% market share in 2018 and just 5.5% in 2013, the Norwegian Road Federation said on Friday (January 3).
Seeking to become the first country to end the sale of fossil-fueled cars by 2025, Norway exempts battery-powered vehicles from the taxes imposed on petrol and diesel engines.
This year, as many as six in 10 of all new cars sold in the country could be fully electric, said Volkswagen (VW) distributor Harald A. Moeller AS, which is preparing to launch several models in 2020.
The country's best-selling car in 2019 was Tesla's mid-sized Model 3 sedan, which retails from 384,900 Norwegian crowns ($43,721.74), racking up an 11% market share in the California-based firm's first attempt at addressing the mass market.
Ford unveiled the Mustang Mach-E SUV late last year, which it hopes will help turn around its flagging fortunes.
Also seeking to grab a slice of Norway's market is China's Geely group, whose Polestar and Volvo brands will begin producing fully electric cars this year.
In October 2019, Polestar opened its first European showroom in Oslo's most upmarket shopping district, rubbing shoulders with fashion designers rather than with rival auto makers.
(Production: Lefteris Karagiannopoulos, Ilze Filks) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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