EV sales and charging use surge in Germany as Iran war keeps fuel prices high

The roll-out of electric vehicles (EVs) in Germany is advancing fast, according to an analysis by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW). One in four newly registered cars was an EV in the first eight months of 2026, with the share climbing to about one third in August and up from about a fifth in 2025, DIW said. 

A purchase premium for EVs introduced at the beginning of the year had helped to spur sales, with nearly 52,000 applications approved by September, the institute added. Most of these were made for smaller battery-electric vehicles, DIW added.

High prices for fossil fuels caused by the US- and Israeli-led war on Iran have pushed more customers to opt for battery-powered cars in recent months. A blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for international fossil fuel trading, led to rapid price increases at the pump, prompting the government to spend more than 1.5 billion euros on a short-lived tax cut on petrol and diesel, in force from May to June. The government recently agreed to re-introduce the tax breaks until the end of the year.

“Electric mobility is finally gaining steam in Germany, but the way to a fully electric car fleet still is a very long one,” said Wolf-Peter Schill, DIW expert for energy sector transformation. There currently are about 2.5 million EVs on the road, equivalent to roughly five percent of the country’s total car stock – and most of the newly registered cars still have a combustion engine. “The purchase premium is giving the market some additional boost. But many of the supported cars likely would have also been bought without a state subsidy,” Schill said. 

Calculating the premium’s full impact so far is not possible, DIW said, adding that much of the paid support went to foreign brands, as domestic ones lack offers in the low-price segment. “Policymakers should finally create a clear perspective for purely battery-powered cars and stop pushing false hopes for the future of combustion engine cars,” Schill said. 

In line with higher EV sales and price hikes for fossil fuels, the use of charging stations for electric cars also increased fast throughout the year. According to figures by operator Vattenfall, electricity demand at their charging stations increased two thirds in the first eight months of the year compared to all of 2025, newspaper Die Zeit reported. Operator EWE said the average utilisation rate of its charging points had increased about 30 percent compared to the previous year. 

Germany’s grid regulator BNetzA said there were roughly 118,000 charging stations across Germany as of August this year, an increase of 16 percent compared to one year before. At the same time, the charging capacity of all stations increased 26 percent.