India is clocking towards a 1.4 billion population and parallelly we will witness a paradigm shift in the automobile sector. India will be the next most used electric vehicle-driven county by 2050 and that initiative has already been started by the government of India.
By 2030 India is eyeing 30% market penetration in the electric vehicle industry.
Everyone now has a clear understanding of what they did to mother nature and somehow, they would now like to contribute something to get a pollution-free atmosphere for themselves and the next generation.
This will be the first step to replace the current regime of the daily commuting medium towards the successful electric vehicle revolution. Almost 50,000cr. the market opportunity is what the government is eying by the end of 2025.
The government is incentivizing the EV platform so that by 2030 India can drastically reduce its dependency on crude oil. This can also lead to a pollution-free society for our future generation.
From USD 220.1 million in 2020 the Indian electric vehicle market size can witness 94% growth by the year 2030. It means almost USD 427 million by 2030.
Government encouraging people to focus on the electric mode of transport medium. Oil prices are at a record all-time high and pushing towards an electric transport mode.
The automobile industry has grown in India since 2011 and till 2019 industry has grown by almost 69%. It is all majorly driven with conventional power like petrol & diesel.
The automobile industry is mainly categorized into four different segments.
a. Two Wheelers
b. Passengers vehicles
c. Commercial vehicles
d. Three Wheelers
The two-wheeler segment is the main contributor to India’s automobile industry. In the year 2011, 11.8 million two-wheelers sold and the figure rises to 21.8 million in the year 2019. A growth of 85% seen in the past ten years.
The passenger vehicle segment has also grown by 36% and the commercial vehicle segment has grown by 47% in the past 10 years.
It has not clearly seen that the overall automobile industry has averagely grown by 50% and it will continue day by day. We have only seen an inclining phase during the COVID-19 outbreak.
During the pandemic, we experienced industry collapse and there was a dip in the automobile market as the lockdown was imposed in every nation, especially in India.
But the Indian automobile market didn’t impact so much. 18% degrowth was observed for the two-wheeler segment and 19% for the passenger segment.
Whereas due to the pandemic and government push, India will see a threefold growth in the first half of FY 2022.
What is the future of electric vehicles in India?
In the year 2019 worldwide 2 million electric vehicles were sold and by 2027 it will have a 41.5% growth in 2019.
There are two factors in the electric vehicle industry and its advantages are lying.
• Future technology
• People are looking for clean air
The government has introduced several incentives for electric vehicle owners and manufacturers. The government has announced upto a 1.5L tax rebate on electric vehicles.
This will encourage owners and manufacturers to shift towards electric vehicle technology. After announcing the tax rebate sales volume grown up by 20% in 2019.
| Category | No. of units |
|---|---|
| Two Wheelers | 1.5L units in 2019 |
| Cars | 3400 units in 2019 |
| Buss | 600 units in 2019 |
Though China is the largest manufacturing country in the world and outsmarting China is not an easy task for India.
India procured Lithium from China, Taiwan, and Japan. Importing Lithium is an impactful area for pricing. India needs to think about how the cost should be minimized.
There is a four-fold concerned area for India to become the largest electric vehicle manufacturing hub globally.
• Access Lithium outside China – Need to access several sources worldwide and ensure availability as per plan.
• Process Lithium at home – If India can manage to process Lithium at home that will be an advantage.
• Find the alternative – India needs to find an alternative that can reduce Lithium dependency on other countries.
• Become the No.1 electric vehicle manufacturer – Ensuring the above three points India will be the next manufacturing hub for the electric vehicle.
What is the Government’s plan to establish an electric vehicle market in India and what all support has been introduced and many will introduce in the future?
The government of India has taken lot many initiatives from the latter half of 2018 and will invest $1.4 billion step by step.
• India will set up its first Lithium refinery plant in Gujrat with Manikaran Power Limited – the largest power trading renewable energy company. They will invest 1000 cr. for set-up.
• Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL) was set up by three major state-owned companies. National Aluminum Company (NALCO), Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL), and Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited (MECL). KABIL will acquire Lithium and Cobalt mines overseas and explore opportunities.
• India made a pact with an Argentine firm for Lithium procurement. It will ensure the robust establishment of battery supply to meet the electric vehicle’s ambitious target in upcoming years.
• Suzuki Motor Corp with Toshiba Crop and Denso Crop setting up lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant. Under Atmanirbhar Bharat push they will assemble the battery pack and later will manufacture Lithium Battery and create a global export hub for Lithium Battery
What is the scope of a start-up in the electric vehicle industry in India?
There will huge scope for start-ups in India in this industry. New firms are willing to grab this industry and jump into it.
The ancillary manufacturer will be the backbone of this industry by making battery component infrastructure, and electric car charging stations across India, Small scooter manufacturers can contribute to the online delivery fleet and many other components.
According to Amara Raja, the leading and top battery manufacturing company is looking $1 billion investment in the next five to ten years down the line.
They will create a Lithium battery manufacturing plant with Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL). They invited small firms to collaborate with them to set up robust supply and ancillary or other components to this industry.
India under Paris agreement will reduce air pollution by 30-35% by 2030 and this will lead to a perfect setup under the green fleet revolution.
Star-ups will play a key role in the successful transition under electric mobility. There are almost 450 plus startups that are directly or indirectly involved in the electric fleet revolution.
Few companies have already started full-scale operations. I will explain a few exciting company details and what they are doing exactly for the industry.
Electric vehicle battery specifications –
Electric vehicle battery depends on weight, energy density, and majorly cost. The late 90’s significantly developed various types of batteries and Lead-Acid was introduced.
Recently Lithium-ion battery was introduced and we have seen significant quality improvement. It has more durability and more power full with fast charging facility and is lightweight.
In the upcoming years, we will be experiencing more development in Lithium-ion batteries. Below the infographic, we have captured four types of batteries that evolved.
The charging of the battery will depend on how the input is and the battery capacity. AC and DC power input variations are seen in the rechargeable battery. A battery management system (BMS) ensures control of the charging rate and power fluctuation.
AC supply delivers the supply to the onboard converter and that converter makes it DC and that supplies to the batteries directly.
Normal power charging comes with AC & DC options and high-power charging comes with only the DC option.
Commute-specific battery specifications for electric vehicle segments.
• For two-wheelers 1.2-3.3KWH battery capacity is ideal one 48-72 voltage is required.
• For three-wheelers 3.6-8KWH battery capacity is ideal one 48-60 voltage is required.
• For 1st generation electric vehicle 21KWH battery capacity is ideal one 72 voltage is required.
• For 2nd generation electric vehicles 30-80KWH battery capacity is ideal one 350-500 voltage is required.
Electric light commercial vehicles (E LCVs) are in between low-voltage and high-voltage options but depend on the loading capacity.
Battery swapping stations –
Battery swapping stations influence the electric vehicle market as this can completely solve charging your two and three-wheelers. But for four-wheelers, a robotic mechanism will help the battery-swapping process for four-wheelers and buses.
There are disadvantages also to battery swapping stations-
• Size standardization
• Slow adaption by the OEMs
• Separate battery GST will be higher as 18% whereas electric vehicle GST is 5%
• Ununiform Battery pack design
| Company Name | What they are operating |
|---|---|
| Ola Electric (Bangalore) | Developed AI-based electric scooter for urban mobility and also offers to lease. |
| Ather Energy (Bangalore) | Developed Scooter with fast charging features and an app to monitor and connect with multiple features. |
| Hero Electric (Gurugram) | One of the largest two-wheeler companies in India. They have started electric scooters with lots of features in them. |
| GMW (Hyderabad) | Working in the three-wheelers e-cargo and passengers segment and later they will come with electric scooters. |
| Sun Mobility (Bangalore) | Provide swappable battery stations for two & three-wheelers. |
| Blu Smart (Ahmedabad) | App-based four-wheeler car rental service. |
| SamratE (Gurugram) | App-based e-rickshaw service with a tie-up with Delhi Metro, Gov of Hariyana, SBI, and other entities. |
| Yulu (Bangalore) | App-based, GPS enabled Bicycle and e-bike rental services. They have a tie-up with Delhi and Mumbai Metro authorities. |
| Revolt Motors (Gurugram) | Electric, App based, and AI-enabled Motorbike developer. |
| Exicom Tele-Systems (Gurugram) | Electric vehicle charging solution and battery manufacturer. Battery management and cloud-based battery health monitoring system. |
So, it is huge scope for start-ups to look for the growing industry, especially in the electric vehicle two-wheeler segment, and start contributing and establishing themselves and generating revenue from this industry.
Which all are the best-selling electric bikes and scooters in India –
Since 2019 we have seen steady growth in electric bikes and scooters in India. During the pandemic, it has steadily grown and another factor is fuel pricing in India that pushed more potential buyers to switch from combustion engines to electric vehicles.
The major challenge is still the availability of charging stations across the country and many companies and the government are relentlessly working toward the infrastructure.
A Pune-based company called Tork Motors working on the leasing of charging infrastructure in Pune. TATA is already creating infrastructure in Maharastra and many companies are working on the same infrastructure.
Here are the Top 10 electric vehicle bikes that are the first preference for many customers –
| Model | Ex-Showroom Price (in India) |
|---|---|
| TVS iQube Electric | INR 1.00 Lakh |
| Ola S1 | INR 85,099 – 1.10 Lakh |
| Revolt RV400 | INR 90,799 |
| Ather 450X | INR 1.27 – 1.46 Lakh |
| Bounce Infinity E1 | INR 45,099 – 68,999 |
| Simple Energy One | INR 1.09 Lakh |
| Bajaj Chetak | INR 1.00 – 1.15 Lakh |
| Hero Electric Optima | INR 51,440 – 67,440 |
| Hero Electric Atria | INR 66,640 |
| Hero Electric Photon | INR 74,240 |
There are various upcoming models that can be seen in 2022. Companies like Honda, Bajaj, Hero, TVS, Suzuki, Ola, and many more.
Which all are the best-selling electric car in India –
Currently, If I leave the premium segment the best-selling electric car market is dominated by TATA Motors. TATA Nexon EV is having a 58% market share in the electric car category followed by TATA Tigor EV with a 13% market share.
MG ZS EV is beyond INR 20L range and comes under high value in this segment. Whereas Mahindra REVAi is the cheapest electric vehicle that is available in the Indian market. Mahindra REVAi is the first and oldest electric car in India.
The electric car price in India starts from INR 4 Lakh and can go up to INR 2-2.5 core with brands like BMW, Audi, Hyundai, Skoda, and many more.
| Model | Price Range (in India) |
|---|---|
| Tata Tigor EV | INR 11.99 – 13.14 Lakh |
| Tata Nexon EV | INR 14.24 – 16.85 Lakh |
| MG ZS EV | INR 20.89 – 24.22 Lakh |
| Mahindra REVAi | INR 3.79-4.67 Lakh |
If I talking about the electric vehicle with the longest range then Audi E-Tron has the larger range in the electric vehicle segment. It has the 484Km range. TATA Tigor EV electric car range is having 306Km on a single charge.
Upcoming electric vehicles in 2022 –
Maruti, Mahindra, TATA & Hyundai will come up with some exciting electric vehicle ranges in 2022. For Maruti, there is no such clarification that when they will launch their first electric vehicle but seems that we need to wait for another 2- 3 years.
Hyundai will launch its electric vehicle under 10 Lakh in the year 2023. It will be a Hyundai small electric car.
TATA Motors will launch Altroz EV electric vehicle under 10 Lakh in the year 2022. They have showcased its auto expo 2020 and have a maximum 300Km range in a single charge.
Mahindra will come up with eKUV100 in early 2022 an approximate price range of 13Lakh. It will have a range of 150Km and be in the mini SUV segment. Another launch will come in the year 2023 with eXUV300 with a different look.
Companies that make or create electric car charging stations in India –
Big car manufacturing companies are setting up car charging units across India. Approximately 70-80 charging points are prelim launch push for the electric vehicle market in India.
A brand like Hyundai, TATA, Mahindra, BMW, Ford, Audi, and Bentley has started their authorized charging stations across India. Hyundai and Mahindra have 20 charging stations, TATA has 19, BMW has 2, and rests with 1 charging station as of now.
Top cities having an electric car charging stations –
Major cities are transforming electric car charging stations by putting up convenient charging points across limits. Hyderabad is having 7 electric car charging stations and followed by 4 in Bangalore and 3 each in Pune and Mumbai.
Electric vehicle owners in these cities can easily identify the nearest electric vehicle charging station.
These will expand more in the coming years and help more buyers to move from combustion engine technology to electric vehicle technology.
Conclusion –
Though it is a big challenge to establish a fully functional electric vehicle model in India within that given time frame, the government is working relentlessly towards its objective by setting up an ecosystem of the electric vehicle industry in India.
Delhi-Mumbai expressway will have a dedicated electric highway lane that can be constructed under 7 lakh core expressway infrastructures.
By doing so, will be the third nation to have separate electric truck lanes after Germany and the US. This electric truck lane will be another key development in setting up an electric vehicle success roadmap.
Many new start-ups are lined up and participating in this electric revolution that will happen in India in the coming years.
If we consider the global penetration of the electric vehicle market by 2025 then that will be 10% of the overall automobile industry and, by 2040 this figure would jump up to 60%.
As we have seen how India as a nation preparing for a 30% market share by 2050. Setting new state-owned companies, encouraging start-ups, SMEs & MSMEs to participate under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, and also asking other entities and locals to go for electric vehicles and avail of extra tax benefits.
A few corporate houses like JSW announced INR 3Lakh (for four-wheelers and for two-wheelers it is INR 1Lakh) incentive for employees who will buy an electric vehicle from 1st Jan 2022. The company is expected to set up charging stations for its plants and offices across India.
