BOULDER, CO – According to a recent report from Pike Research, a part of Navigant’s Energy Practice, sales of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) in the United States will climb steadily over the remainder of this decade, with Ford and Toyota leading the sales.

Ford and Toyota will lead the PEV market in terms of total vehicles sold in the U.S. from 2012 to 2020, the Pike study concluded.

“Despite the early introduction of the Leaf, from Nissan, and the significant marketing push behind it, we expect Nissan to trail Toyota, Ford, and General Motors by a significant margin through the end of the decade,” said Research Director John Gartner. “Although Ford has been relatively slower than some competitors to enter the passenger PEV market, its future plans are ambitious, and it will be the only automaker to surpass 400,000 PEVs sold in the United States through 2020.”

PEV sales in the United States will reach nearly 48,000 units in 2012, making the United States the country with the highest number of PEV sales. The country will maintain this leading position at least through 2020 – and beyond, according to the report. Worldwide sales of PEVs are expected to surpass 1 million units in 2017, after seven years in the market.

The report examines the global market landscape for PHEVs and BEVs, including a detailed analysis of market drivers and barriers, technology issues, policy and regulatory factors, and the competitive landscape of original equipment manufacturers and key suppliers. Detailed market forecasts are provided through 2020, segmented by world region and vehicle category. An executive summary of the report is available at the Pike Research website:  www.pikeresearch.com.