Toyota Motor Corp announced Thursday that it has sold over 1 million hybrid cars in the past 10 years.

The company introduced the Toyota Prius in 1997, when it first went on sale in Japan. It is the world’s first mass-produced and marketed hybrid car. What followed were hybrid minivans, sport-utility vehicles and rear-wheel-drive sedans.

Ten years later, the company announces that the number of Toyota hybrids sold so far around the world has reached the 1 million mark (1.05 million units to be precise), as of May 31.

Toyota turned to the markets in North America and Europe with great success in 2000. The waiting time nowadays for receiving a Prius can extend to as long as six months in some parts of the US.

The hybrid cars run on both gasoline and electricity. Toyota designed them with the aim of reducing the amount of pollution and maximizing fuel efficiency. Indeed, these cars emit fewer pollutants and greenhouse gases than the traditional ones.

Hybrid cars are available in more than 40 countries around the world. Encouraged by the consumers’ response, Toyota intends to increase annual sales of hybrid vehicles to 1 million within the next 5 years.