An EV carshare in Hangzhou, China. Rawpixel
With sales of electric cars surging, China is on track to hit peak gasoline demand next year, two new analyses find.
Already, more than half of all EVs worldwide can be found on Chinese roads, and this year EVs are projected to account for more than a third of new car sales in China.
With plug-in cars increasingly displacing gas guzzlers, China is now on track to hit peak gasoline demand in 2024, according to independent analyses from the International Energy Agency and Rystad Energy, a Norway-based consultancy. Chinese oil refiners CNPC and Sinopec project that peak gasoline will come slightly later, in 2025, Reuters reports.
Worldwide, gasoline demand remains below its pre-pandemic high. With EVs growing in popularity, it’s possible that global gasoline demand has already peaked, according to the International Energy Agency.
