Strong Tesla sales push Norway to 58% zero-emission share in March

Enlarge (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

Over 58 percent of passenger cars sold in Norway in March were zero-emission vehicles, according to Norway’s Road Traffic Information Office (OFV). That’s a new record for the small Scandinavian country that has long led the world in adoption of zero-emission vehicles.

The strong sales reflected pent-up demand for Tesla’s new Model 3, which only became available available in large volumes in late February. The Model 3 accounted for 5,315 of the 18,375 vehicles sold in Norway in March, with the Model S and Model X selling another 500 vehicles combined.

“In 2018, Norway’s fully electric car sales rose to a record 31.2 percent market share from 20.8 percent in 2017, far ahead of any other nation,” Reuters reports.