PETROL-ELECTRIC hybrids were the most common type of new passenger car registered in Singapore in 2023, exceeding the registrations of cars powered solely by petrol.

According to Land Transport Authority (LTA) figures, hybrids accounted for 45.9 per cent of new passenger car registrations in 2023, or 13,864 out of the total 30,225. In 2022, hybrid cars’ share of the market was 37.6 per cent.

Hybrid car registrations increased by 19.1 per cent or 2,224 compared to 2022.

In comparison, cars powered solely by petrol accounted for 34.6 per cent, or 10,461 registrations in 2023. In 2022, the market share of petrol cars was 47.9 per cent.

Compared to 2022, petrol car registrations dropped by 29.4 per cent or 4,356 units.

Electric vehicles (EVs) made up 18.1 per cent or 5,468 of registrations, up from 11.7 per cent in 2022. Sales of EVs surged around 50 per cent in 2023.

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Total new passenger car registrations in 2023 remained stable, dropping slightly to 30,225 from 30,939 in 2022.

Walter Theseira, associate professor of Economics at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, said that increased registrations of hybrids was the result of the Vehicular Emissions Scheme (VES) and carmakers expanding their range of hybrid offerings.

VES ranks cars based on their emissions performance. Those categorised as more pollutive are penalised, while cleaner cars receive rebates. It favours electrified vehicles such as hybrids and EVs, which are typically cleaner than petrol-only cars.

On Jan 1, 2024, tightened pollution thresholds for VES were introduced, which increased the advantage of hybrid cars. 

Prof Theseira described hybrid cars as a “policy escape valve”.

As part of the Singapore Green Plan 2030, new registrations of cars and taxis with diesel engines will not be allowed from 2025, and those with combustion engines (including petrol) will not be allowed from 2030.

“The (2030) ban will apply only to vehicles powered purely by combustion engines, so everyone who is not ready to buy an EV and is aware of the policy will buy a hybrid,” Prof Theseira said.

The hybrid car market is now mature and has a wide range of offerings as most carmakers have adopted them as a stopgap to full EVs by now, he added.

The associate professor also said that since hybrids still qualify to be sold “for some time at least”, the upward trend of hybrid cars should continue.

Hybrids are cars powered by petrol and electricity. They recuperate kinetic energy and store it in a small battery when braking or slowing down and do not require charging from an external source, unlike EVs or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.