Strait of Hormuz blockade to boost EV demand, energy watchdog says
Global sales of electric vehicles are likely to receive a boost from the war in Iran, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday, as persistently high oil prices encourage the shift away from combustion engines.
The Paris-based IEA said global electric vehicle sales had already risen by 20% in 2025 to more than 20 million units, meaning one in four new cars sold worldwide last year was electric.
Chinese manufacturers accounted for 60% of global EV sales, while European and North American carmakers each produced around 15% of electric vehicles sold worldwide, the agency said.
In Germany, Europe’s largest EV market, sales surged by 50% in 2025 to a record 850,000 vehicles.
The energy watchdog expects global EV sales to rise further this year to around 23 million vehicles, representing nearly 30% of all cars sold worldwide.
The report said the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — the critical shipping lane through which roughly 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies flowed before the US-Israeli war on Iran — would probably further accelerate EV sales in the medium term due to persistently high oil prices.
The IEA expects national governments to introduce purchase subsidies and other incentives for electric vehicles to ease pressure on consumers and reduce dependence on oil imports.
“Electric car sales set new records in close to 100 countries last year. The growing popularity of EVs has marked a major shift for car markets and the energy system as a whole – and it is providing some relief now amid the largest oil supply shock in history,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.
“Looking ahead, the falls we have seen in battery prices and the potential policy responses to the current global energy crisis are set to provide further momentum in EV markets.”
