Retail sales of passenger EVs, two-wheelers see huge jump

Retail sales of electric passenger vehicles grew 296% to touch 2,352 units, while those of electric two-wheelers rose 433% to 32,443 units last month, data from the Federation of Automobiles Dealers Association showed.

Automotive firms are busy firming up new launches to transition more vehicles in their portfolio to electric.

The proximate trigger for this is the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, which is expected to severely hit the auto industry. The shortage of semiconductor chips as well as spiralling crude oil rates could also hurt conventional vehicle sales.

Amid this, the silver lining seems to be the enhanced demand for electric vehicles (EVs).

A greater number of EVs on road, the availability of newer models and an increase in the number of charging stations are expected to encourage buyers to shift to EVs.

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“Fuel price hikes will propel faster EV adoption, especially the two- and three-wheeler category,” said Hemal Thakkar, director, Crisil Research.

The proposed battery swapping policy will also help scale up the EV ecosystem and drive the adoption of EVs in the country.

Most auto companies are stepping up production by partnerships or by putting up separate assembly lines, which will see more EV models on the road in fiscal year 2023.

In February, many EV players including Ola, Hero Electric and Ather Energy, saw their highest sales ever, Thakkar said.

Hero Electric and the Mahindra Group announced last month a ₹150 crore five-year partnership, and rolled out their first electric two-wheeler, Optima, to hike growth of EVs.

Ola Electric and Ather Energy are also increasing production capacity of EVs.

MG Motor India on Monday launched its all-new ZS EV variant, with a starting price tag of Rs 21.99 lakh.

The production ramp-up and fuel price increase are benefiting the EV industry, said Vinkesh Gulati, president of FADA.

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Tata Motors managed to sell 2,264 EV units in February.

So far, the company has more than 15,000 EVs, which “is 2.7x the EV industry sales of FY21…,” said a Tata Motors spokesperson. “Today, more than 60% of our customers are first-time EV buyers/using it for primary use, compared to 30% a year ago. The positive word of mouth from these customers is helping us further expand the customer base,” the spokesperson said.

Tata Motors recently raised $1 billion from TPG Rise Climate to develop a comprehensive EV portfolio of 10 new EV models by 2025.

Experts, however, caution that when the current geopolitical situation plays out, it could have an impact on overall automobile sales including internal combustion engine vehicles

Trade sanctions are likely to be a constraint on the import of components from Russia and Eastern Europe.

“Companies are indigenising and diversifying their procurement plan to shield themselves from international supply chain disruptions,” said Rishabh Jain, programme lead, CEEW- CEF.