More electric than petrol passenger cars being added to Malta’s roads

While the total number of purely petrol-using passenger cars vastly outnumbers all other engine types combined, the rate at which electric passenger cars are being added to Maltese roads on a yearly basis is higher, data published by the National Statistics Office (NSO) shows.

In the second quarter of 2026, there were 11,305 licensed electric passenger cars in Malta, which is 3,150 more than were in the second quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, the number of purely petrol-using passenger cars in 2026 stood at 216,321, which is 1,858 more than the same quarter last year.

This trend could be noted as far back as the fourth quarter of 2024, where the number of licensed electric passenger cars saw a higher increase than petrol cars when compared to the same quarter a year prior.

This does not take into account the number of mild-hybrid passenger cars, which the NSO places in their own category. These cars use a small electric motor and battery to assist the gasoline engine, improving fuel efficiency without being able to drive on electric power alone. In Q2 this year, there were 12,930 of these passenger cars, which is 2,269 more than the same quarter in 2025.

The rise in electric passenger cars comes at a time when budget EVs are in the market. Indeed some of the country’s largest car dealerships are in direct competition, each using Government electric vehicle (EV) and scrappage grants to drive prices down. More recently, China's leading electric vehicle manufacturers, XPENG, was also to enter the Maltese market.

The number of plug-in hybrid passenger cars has also been increasing, albeit at a slower pace. In Q2 this year, there were 5,593 petrol-electric plug-in hybrid passenger cars, and 117 diesel plug-in hybrids. In Q2 2025, the numbers stood at 4,846 and 88 respectively.

As for diesel passenger cars, they have been on the decline for a number of years. In Q2 this year, there were 90,492 of these vehicles registered, which is less than the 92,203 there were in Q2 last year. In the same quarter back in 2022, there were 95,651 diesel-using passenger cars on the road.

The data also shows that the number of motorcycles/e-bicycle/pedacycles has increased substantially since Q2 2022, when there were 38,051 of them. In the second quarter of this year, there were 53,649.