Electric car drive heats up as H1 sales in Türkiye jump over 465%

Electric Vehicles (EV) sales in Türkiye jumped over 465% in the year through June, according to the industry data, spurred by the increasing momentum in the deliveries of the country’s first indigenous car and the arrival of new brands.

Some 12,792 battery-power cars exchanged hands in the first half of the year, according to the Automotive Distributors and Mobility Association (ODMD) data that showed overall vehicle sales in Türkiye achieved their best June and six-month figures ever.

EV sales mark a whopping 465.3% year-over-year increase from 2,263 units sold last year, the data compiled by the Anadolu Agency (AA) showed. Their gasoline-electric hybrid rival saw sales jump 47.5% in the first half of this year to 43,649 units.

Battery-powered and hybrid vehicles saw their market shares reach 3% and 10.2%, up from 0.8% and down from 10.6% in the first six months of last year, respectively.

Cars powered by gasoline held a 68.9% share in the overall sales in the January-June period, down from 69.7% a year ago, while that of diesel vehicles remained unchanged at 16.9%.

Overall, passenger cars and light commercial vehicles from January through June reached 555,867 units, an increase of 55.3% versus the first half of last year.

Demand has been notably high as depreciation in the Turkish lira and soaring prices prompted consumers to continue to opt for cars they see as a tool to safeguard themselves from high inflation.

Annual inflation cooled further and fell to 38.21%, marking a significant regress after touching a 24-year high above 85% in October last year.

The prices of vehicles soared due to supply shortages coupled with strong demand, as well as high inflation and the depreciation in the lira, which makes imports more expensive.

The battery-powered cars trend is gaining a fresh impetus as Türkiye’s first domestically produced electric vehicle Togg hit the roads.

The brand said it delivered some 808 units of its T10X as of the end of June. Mass production of a fully electric C-segment SUV was launched last October, and deliveries started in late April. The carmaker had said it planned to deliver 20,000 units by the end of 2023.

Togg said the two-month sales figure granted it a 28.9% market share, making it a leader in the electric SUV segment. It also topped the first-half list with a 15% market share, the company said in a statement.

The T10X is initially being sold with one engine type and two battery options. It will feature battery packs with 52.4 and 88.5 kilowatt-hours capacities, boasting ranges of 314 and 523 kilometers (195 and 325 miles).

The batteries of the T10X can be recharged to up to 80% from 20% in less than 28 minutes at fast-charging stations.

A consortium of five Turkish companies called the Automobile Initiative Group of Türkiye, or Togg, is manufacturing the vehicle in cooperation with the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB).

Besides the SUV, Togg will manufacture four other models – a sedan, C-hatchback, B-SUV and B-MPV – by 2030. The sedan will follow the mass production of the SUV.

The current production capacity of around 100,000 vehicles per year will reach 175,000 once Togg’s factory reaches total capacity.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said some 28,000 units would be produced this year. The brand aims to manufacture 1 million vehicles across the five segments by 2030.

Togg plans to begin exports as of 2025, while the initial production will be tailored for the domestic market.