After a booming first quarter that saw battery-electric and plug-in hybrids take a record 8.3 per cent share of new zero-emission vehicle registrations in Canada, data from S&P Global Mobility shows a pullback in Q2, though year-over-year growth is still strong

New zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) registrations in Canada in the second quarter of 2022 made up 7.5 per cent of the total new car market, according to data in the latest report from London-based consulting firm S&P Global Mobility (formerly IHS Markit).

That figure represents a big step back from Q1 of this year, when ZEV registrations — which includes battery-electric (BEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) vehicles — hit an all-time high of 8.3 per cent.

Even so, the 7.5 per cent share is still significantly higher than the 6.5 per cent recorded during Q4 of 2021.

S&P Global uses the term “levelled off” in its summary to describe the fall back in Q2.

(Note, unlike previous S&P Global reports in which it broke out quarterly data, its latest report shows only aggregate results for the first half (H1) of 2022; however, Electric Autonomy Canada inferred the Q2 results based on previously published quarterly data.)

BEV registrations volatile

Looking closer, the entire drop from Q1 to Q2 was due to a decline in battery-electric vehicle registrations, which fell to 5.4 per cent in Q2 from 6.2 per cent in Q1. Plug-in hybrids, meanwhile, saw a fraction of an increase to 2.3 per cent from 2.1 per cent. (These figures may not match ZEV total exactly due to rounding.)

Battery-electric vehicle activity was equally volatile in Q1, however, when they were the driving force behind that quarter’s surge in ZEV registrations compared to Q4 2021.

The S&P Global report summary also highlights the year-over-year growth in ZEV registrations. According to its half-year data, registrations in H1 2022 represented a 7.9 per cent market share, up from 5.2 per cent in H1 2021, with overall volume increasing by 35.2 per cent.

For the new car market overall, registrations went down by 11.8 per cent in H1 2022 versus H1 2021, though both BEVs and PHEVs saw volume gains. In real numbers, 11,960 new BEVs hit Canadian roads through the end of June this year, along with 2,844 PHEVs.

Provinces and Territories

In Q2 2022, ZEV market share in both top provinces, British Columbia and Quebec, fell slightly versus Q1. B.C continues to lead the country, with ZEVs making up 15.7 per cent of all light-duty vehicle registrations in the province (down from 17.1 per cent in Q1). Quebec is not far behind, at 11.2 per cent (down from 13.6 per cent in Q1).

While Ontario’s ZEV market share still trails the national average, at 6.1 per cent, it was the only province in the top three that saw ZEV registration increase (up from 5.7 per cent in Q1).

Yukon ranked fourth in the report for Q2, with new ZEV registrations rising to 4.9 per cent from 3.3 per cent in Q1.

ZEV registrations for Q2 in Prince Edward Island, Alberta and Manitoba all declined compared to Q1.

At a municipal level, Canada’s top three cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver recorded adoption rates of 8 per cent, 13 per cent and 19.2 per cent respectively in Q2. The report says that Toronto “outpaced” the others with a volume rise of 111 per cent.

S&P Global Mobility’s Q2 report summary can be found here.