Govt incentives, infra investments continue to drive EV adoption in India: Report

New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) Government incentives and infrastructure investments are boosting local electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and a range of policy measures and infrastructure developments are underway to help bridge the gap and push the market closer to the 2030 goal, a report showed on Wednesday.

India’s passenger vehicle (PV) sales grew 4.6 per cent in 2024 (year-on-year), surpassing 4.3 million units. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 2.5 per cent of total PV sales, marking a 16 per cent YoY increase, according to Counterpoint’s latest ‘India Passenger Vehicle Model Sales Tracker’.

The increase in passenger BEV sales can be attributed to the launch of several new models, including the Tata Curvv.ev, MG Windsor, BYD Seal, BYD eMax 7 and the Tata Punch.ev refresh, among others.

India’s government has set ambitious targets for EV adoption. It aims to achieve 30 per cent EV penetration in the passenger vehicle segment, 80 per cent in the combined two-wheeler and three-wheeler segment and 70 per cent in the commercial vehicle segment by 2030.

According to Abhik Mukherjee, automotive market analyst, US tariff hikes for automobiles and their components threaten India’s growing component exports, but at the same time, they create opportunities for increasing component exports to other markets.

With Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest PV player, and international BEV specialists like Tesla and VinFast entering the Indian market with competitively priced affordable and premium models, BEVs are projected to capture 5 per cent of the PV market by the end of 2025.

Mukherjee said that EV adoption is progressing even more rapidly in the two-wheeler segment.

Electric two-wheelers captured a 6.2 per cent share of total two-wheeler sales in 2024, reflecting an impressive 36 per cent YoY growth.

Supported by incentives and tax breaks, electric two-wheelers are increasingly being used for last-mile delivery and micro-mobility applications.

“Food delivery and quick commerce companies are expanding their use of electric two-wheelers to promote a more sustainable and greener future. Besides, urban commuters are increasingly preferring EVs over traditional powertrains for their daily travel needs,” the report mentioned.

While EV penetration in the commercial vehicle (CV) segment remains relatively low, the electric three-wheeler category is leading the transition.

In 2024, electric three-wheelers accounted for a 55 per cent share in the three-wheeler category, implying that every second three-wheeler bought was an EV. This high share is primarily due to high demand from the last-mile delivery sector, said the report.

—IANS

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