Japan Electric Vehicles

According to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association (JADA), 3,675,650 new cars were sold in 2021, and 40.5 percent were electric vehicles. Although Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) still account for 96.8 percent of new EV sales, Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs), Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) showed significant year-over-year growth in sales. Sales of BEVs grew by 48.5 percent to 21,693, as sales of imported BEVs almost tripled. Sales of PHEVs were 22,777, which was up by 54.5 percent and driven by increased domestic and imported PHEV sales. Sales of FCEVs were 2,464, a threefold increase from the previous year.

The latest government subsidies for the purchase of new electric vehicles are 650,000 Japanese Yen (US$5,200) for BEVs, 450,000 Japanese Yen (US$3,600) for PHEVs and 2,300,000 Japanese Yen (US$18,500) for FCEVs. In addition, the subsidy amounts are higher if the vehicle can extract power from an in-vehicle outlet (1500W / AC100V) or via either a power exporter or a Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) bidirectional charger. For those vehicles, the subsidy is up to 850,000 Japanese Yen (US$6,800) for BEVs, 550,000 Japanese Yen (US$4,400) for PHEVs, and 2,550,000 Japanese Yen (US$20,500) for FCEVs.

U.S. companies may find business opportunities in various areas related to electric vehicle, such as batteries, EV charging infrastructure, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) solutions. 

For additional information, contact U.S. Commercial Service at Office.Osaka-Kobe@trade.gov.