Over 70 million light-duty battery-electric vehicles will be sold in 2032 compared to less than a million sold in 2017, according to a market research report published by Information Trends. The battery-electric vehicle sales in 2032 will be almost half of the overall light-duty vehicles sold that year.

"We are witnessing a seismic shift in the auto market that parallels the mobile phone revolution," said Naqi Jaffery, the lead author of the report. Besides the transition to electrified vehicles, this shift encompasses autonomous driving and connected vehicles.

The report, "Global Market for Battery-Electric Vehicles," says that the primary factor contributing to the phenomenal growth of electric vehicles are government incentives and subsidies. The economies of scale resulting from the swift uptake of these vehicles, however, will lead to considerable declines in costs, making government incentives and subsidies unnecessary.

"While battery-electric vehicles are the short-term beneficiaries of the transition to clean energy, we will eventually see widespread adoption of battery-electric/fuel-cell hybrid vehicles," Jaffery said. These hybrid vehicles will have more than double the range of internal combustion engines, besides offering all the other advantages of electric mobility.

Charging infrastructures are rapidly being developed in most of the major markets, helping propel the uptake of battery-electric vehicles. These infrastructures are increasingly being equipped with fast charging capabilities that help significantly reduce charging time.

More than half of the battery-electric vehicles are being produced and sold in China which has emerged as the biggest auto market globally, the report said. Virtually every major automaker has established a presence in China to take advantage of the country's auto boom.