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Electric Vehicle Sales in India dipped by 19 percent to 2,36,802 units in FY2021 from 2,95,683 units in FY2020 as per the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicle (SMEV). The volumes include sales across electric two-wheelers (e2W), three-wheelers (e3W), and four-wheelers (e4W).
Electric Vehicle Sales dipped in FY2021 after continuous growth in the past 5 years. Cumulative EV sales for FY2021 were 2,38,120 units, and was down 19.4 percent, from 2,95,497 units in FY2020.
Electric Two-Wheelers constitute the largest chunk of the Electric Vehicle sales in India and even in FY2021, they contributed to over 60 percent of the EV sales in India. The sales in the e2W segment declined 5 percent, from 1,52,000 units in FY2020 to 1,43,837 units in FY2021. The majority of the e2W sales came from the low-speed models (1,03,000 units); while 40,836 high-speed models were sold in FY2021.
Electric Three-Wheelers had caught up well in FY2020 and had already started making a dent in the ICE Three-Wheelers. However; the three-wheeler segment itself declined significantly in FY2021 due to incessant lockdowns and commuters' fear of public mobility. Even e3W sales were impacted and the volumes slumped by 37 percent to 88,378 units in FY2021. Do note that the data doesn’t include e3Ws that were not registered with the transport authority.
Meanwhile, Electric Passenger Vehicle sales recorded the all-time highest volume in FY2021. Tata Nexon EV with sales of 3,803 units between April 2020 to March 2021 emerged as India’s Best Selling Electric car for FY2021 (source).
Commenting on the EV sales, Sohinder Gill, Director-General, SMEV, said: “We were anticipating a good growth before the start of FY2021 but sales remained stagnant due to various reasons. Sales in the electric three- and two-wheeler segments stood low as compared to FY2020. A good thing is that people have started moving towards advanced batteries i.e. lithium. The city speed and high-speed categories in the two-wheeler segment have witnessed growth. However, a lot more needs to be done to achieve the target under the FAME II scheme. Timely intervention by the government in a form of policy change is required to fuel the growth and achieve the target by the end of FY2022.”
However, a lot more needs to be done to achieve the target under the FAME II scheme. Timely intervention by the government in a form of policy change is required to fuel the growth and achieve the target by the end of FY22, he added.
Mr.Gill also mentioned that a strong bank finance mechanism is still missing in the country. Only a few banks like SBI and Axis are offering loans on selected models. The government should ask banks to offer loans on electric vehicles, which will augment sales.
“Around, 1,300 charging stations have been set up till now. Many corporates have ventured into the segment and started installing charging stations across the country. We anticipate that in the next 5-6 years, we would be able to create robust charging infrastructure in the country.” was commented on the charging infrastructure.