Ireland's €5,000 EV Scrappage Scheme Closes Hours After Opening Due to High Demand

Ireland's Government closed its ICE2EV Pilot Scheme, offering a €5,000 grant for replacing old internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles with electric vehicles (EVs), just hours after opening due to overwhelming demand. This grant was in addition to the existing €3,500 SEAI grant, allowing car buyers to receive up to €8,500 for scrapping ICE vehicles at least 13 years old. The Department of Transport stated that the scheme aimed to replace 2,000 vehicles, with 65 per cent of its budget reserved for rural applicants.

New car registrations in Ireland for the first six months of the year totaled 85,203, a 4.2 per cent increase. Hybrids and all-electric models now constitute two-thirds of new car sales, with regular hybrids at 27.7 per cent, EVs at 23.7 per cent, and plug-in hybrids at 14.7 per cent. Petrol cars accounted for 21 per cent and diesel for 12.9 per cent. Brian Cooke, SIMI director general, anticipates further EV sales growth.

Toyota was the bestselling new car brand with 11,912 registrations, followed by Volkswagen (9,544) and Skoda (8,368). Volkswagen's ID4 was the bestselling all-electric model. Used imports increased by 39 per cent to 47,109, with Japan as the primary source. Van sales rose 14.4 per cent to 21,492, led by Ford, while truck sales decreased by 6 per cent to 1,553.