As a Norwegian this keep coming up in lunch conversations. I just bought an old used car from somebody buying a Tesla.
What we come back to is the very high sale taxes on new cars in Norway (our "rule of thumb" is that cars are close to twice as expensive in Norway as in some other countries), but that most(/all?) of those taxes are waived for electric. So the alternative to getting, e.g., a Tesla is paying almost twice as much for a "similar" BMW. Same story for lower-end cars.
Also, on the commuter high-ways leading in to Oslo, there's one lane that's reserved for bus+taxi+electric (similar to the 2+ or 3+ person-per-car lanes in California). There's a joke that there's a standing queue of Teslas in that lane now (though I don't drive there so I haven't seen how much of an exaggeration that is).
Also, electric don't pay on the toll roads, which saves you 3-4$ each time if you're living outside towns and commuting in.
The electricity:petrol price ratio is also more favorable in Norway than many other countries, thanks to a combination of high petrol taxes but not too expensive electricity (due to the large hydroelectric capacity).
For example, in California, typical petrol prices are around $0.85/L ($3.20/gal), and residential electricity prices are around $0.17/kWh. So you get about 5 kWh of electricity for the cost of a liter of petrol. Meanwhile in Norway, typical petrol prices are around $2.45/L ($9.25/gal), and residential electricity prices are around $0.25/kWh. So you get about 10 kWh of electricity for the cost of a liter of petrol.
edit: Actually might be an even bigger ratio. I was getting the Norwegian retail price of $0.25/kWh from Eurostat [1], but Statistics Norway gives a price of only $0.14/kWh [2]. Which would make for nearly 18 kWh for the cost of a L of petrol, 3-4x better ratio than in California.
About prices, I compared prices in Sweden of a new Audi A4 and a Tesla S as normally cars are much more expensive in Norway, but for Tesla it's cheaper in Norway. I have not checked any rules about taxes or such, just got the prices for the same model from audis and teslas regional web pages.
Sweden Norway
Audi A4 33 269 64 843
Tesla S 70 798 55 682
The argument is right. But consider rebates as support or venture fund by Govt. It promote sales - sales promote more production - more production promotes more private investment and better ideas.
The cycle has started and showing good signs.
I believe, if the same support is replicated across the world, it is very much possible we may witness electric automobiles a very viable alternative within next 10 years.
As a Norwegian I would like to see sale numbers in Oslo compared to the rest of the country.
My educated guess is that the vast majority of EVs are bought and driven in the larger Oslo area, and if I'm right, I think we actually should be discussing Oslo and not Norway as a country.
Norway is one of the richest countries in the world. Here in LA a bunch of my neighbors have bought the Tesla S. The tax incentive on a luxury car is nice, but it is still a luxury car. I do like how hydrocarbons are the main driver of green tech in Norway.
Are you sure it will reduce the pollution (genuine question)? The cars will stop polluting directly but the electricity producers will start producing much more electricity (which is much more pollution) to feed the cars. So, which of these two pollutions is better - nuclear waste/pollution or co2?
[+] [-] dagss|12 years ago|reply
What we come back to is the very high sale taxes on new cars in Norway (our "rule of thumb" is that cars are close to twice as expensive in Norway as in some other countries), but that most(/all?) of those taxes are waived for electric. So the alternative to getting, e.g., a Tesla is paying almost twice as much for a "similar" BMW. Same story for lower-end cars.
Also, on the commuter high-ways leading in to Oslo, there's one lane that's reserved for bus+taxi+electric (similar to the 2+ or 3+ person-per-car lanes in California). There's a joke that there's a standing queue of Teslas in that lane now (though I don't drive there so I haven't seen how much of an exaggeration that is).
Also, electric don't pay on the toll roads, which saves you 3-4$ each time if you're living outside towns and commuting in.
[+] [-] _delirium|12 years ago|reply
For example, in California, typical petrol prices are around $0.85/L ($3.20/gal), and residential electricity prices are around $0.17/kWh. So you get about 5 kWh of electricity for the cost of a liter of petrol. Meanwhile in Norway, typical petrol prices are around $2.45/L ($9.25/gal), and residential electricity prices are around $0.25/kWh. So you get about 10 kWh of electricity for the cost of a liter of petrol.
edit: Actually might be an even bigger ratio. I was getting the Norwegian retail price of $0.25/kWh from Eurostat [1], but Statistics Norway gives a price of only $0.14/kWh [2]. Which would make for nearly 18 kWh for the cost of a L of petrol, 3-4x better ratio than in California.
[1] http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index....
[2] http://www.ssb.no/en/elkraftpris
[+] [-] Zitrax|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] alecco|12 years ago|reply
How do people feel being a top oil exporter and doing green policies/laws internally?
[+] [-] ggjain|12 years ago|reply
The cycle has started and showing good signs.
I believe, if the same support is replicated across the world, it is very much possible we may witness electric automobiles a very viable alternative within next 10 years.
[+] [-] dghughes|12 years ago|reply
As a Canadian I can't see a Tesla being of any use in the winter, do people talk about that?
[+] [-] Pxtl|12 years ago|reply
Seriously, everybody was all for saving the world from global cataclysm until we found out it would be expensive and inconvenient.
[+] [-] salient|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ggjain|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rsendv|12 years ago|reply
My educated guess is that the vast majority of EVs are bought and driven in the larger Oslo area, and if I'm right, I think we actually should be discussing Oslo and not Norway as a country.
Edit: Reorganized two words.
[+] [-] bhewes|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] riggins|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] conductor|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] embro|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tobiasu|12 years ago|reply
[+] [-] aquadrop|12 years ago|reply