Battery-electric car sales to reach 23% market share in EU, Norway in 2026, research shows

March 12 (Reuters) - Battery-electric vehicles will reach a 23% share of new car sales in the European Union and Norway in 2026 and 28% in 2027 as EVs become cheaper and emission targets support the market, campaign group Transport & Environment said on Thursday.

European campaign groups say Europe's transition to electric cars is on track and can be profitable for carmakers, who pressured the European Commission to propose last December the reversal of an effective ban on sales of new internal combustion engine cars from 2035.

• T&E said battery-electric car prices fell in average by 4% in 2025 thanks to the launch of new models priced below 25,000 euros ($28,970)

• It said those models can become as cheap as their combustion-engine equivalents by 2030 if the EU maintains or strengthens its Co2 emission targets, while larger models have already reached parity

• "The market is expected to reach a tipping point in the next few years," T&E Cars Director Lucien Mathieu told reporters

• "Backtracking on the 2030 target, as the industry wants, would be a very big threat," he said

• If the 2030 target is weakened, carmakers are likely to prioritise margins, delaying price parity by at least two years, T&E said

• Global carmakers including Stellantis STLAM.MI have booked in recent months some $55 billion in writedowns as they scale back their electric vehicle ambitions

• Facing tougher EU emissions rules since 2025, companies have agreed to pool their Co2 emissions with EV leaders including Tesla TSLA.O and Polestar to avoid fines

• T&E said carmakers representing about half the European market had already met their 2025-2027 Co2 target in 2025 alone, including BMW Group BMWG.DE, a Mercedes MBGn.DE-Volvo Car pool, and a Tesla pool which included Stellantis and Toyota 7203.T last year

• It said industry warnings in 2024 of 15 billion euros ($17.38 billion) in possible 2025 fines were "very far off", estimating penalties would have been at most 2 billion euros if the yearly target had been enforced

($1 = 0.8630 euros)