The study reveals that six Southeast Asian countries are seeing rapid growth in the EV market. The comprehensive study, which covers Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, found that there has been a significant increase in both EV adoption and local manufacturing activity.
This indicates that passenger EV sales will more than triple in 2023 to a staggering 153,500 units. This surge is mainly due to supportive government policies and the growing presence of Chinese automakers in the region. Thailand leads the way with EV sales increasing four-fold to 86,400 units.
“Increasing competition between new and established automakers, along with falling battery manufacturing costs, will drive further acceleration in the adoption of EVs in the coming decades,” said Komal Kareer, associate for clean transportation (South and Southeast Asia) at BloombergNEF.
While the passenger EV market is thriving, the electric two-wheeler sector is slowing, projected to grow by just 3.8% in 2023. Vietnam continues to dominate the sector, accounting for more than 80% of electric two-wheeler sales in Southeast Asia.
Looking ahead, BloombergNEF's Transition Economy Scenario predicts that passenger EV sales will reach approximately 2.7 million units by 2040, accounting for 56% of total auto sales.
However, the report warns that internal combustion engines will still account for 76% of the region's vehicles in 2040, suggesting governments may need to step up efforts to meet net zero targets.
