Love for electric SUVs triples India’s lagging EV sales

Small SUVs are gaining popularity as they can navigate India’s potholed roads and bad traffic with ease, while serving as a status symbol for aspiring buyers. Compact electric SUVs are built on small car platforms, which makes them more cost-effective than their larger counterparts, which require larger, more expensive battery packs.

Still, India lags behind countries like China and the US in adopting electric mobility. Most local automakers have been hesitant to make the switch, as electric vehicles are more expensive than internal combustion engine vehicles and a lack of public charging stations has deterred buyers. Last year, 49,800 electric vehicles were sold in India, accounting for just 1.3% of the 3.8 million passenger vehicles sold, the report said.

Also read: EV sales in India hit record high?Over 278,000 units sold in the first 3 months

This has created room for foreign automakers to expand in India’s nascent EV market. Warren Buffett-backed BYD seeks to capture 40 percent of India’s electric vehicle market by 2030, while SAIC plans to launch three electric vehicles by the end of 2024.

Local manufacturers are trying to catch up by increasing investment in electric vehicles. Tata Motors Ltd, which dominates the local EV market, plans to invest $2.2 billion, while India’s largest automaker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, has committed $1.2 billion.

According to reports, last year, many state-owned enterprises and government departments issued tenders for the construction of 593 charging stations on expressways. The expansion of the charger will alleviate consumers’ range anxiety on intercity trips and encourage the use of electric buses.

First published date: March 31, 2023 at 11:45 AM CST