Brandy Ryan
The India Electric Vehicle (EV) market is seeing record sales: passenger EVs recorded 75,000 sales in 2023, twice the volume sold last year. It’s also one of the fastest-growing EV markets in the world, with millions of EV owners.
What’s driving this shift? There’s India’s pledge to reduce carbon emission intensity by 33-35% by 2030 (compared to 2005 levels). And consumers are changing behavior as they adapt to technological and social changes.
Electric delivery scooters and passenger rickshaws are becoming more and more commonplace in India: 90% of EVs there are such two- and three-wheelers.
A significant part of the overall shift to EVs is making them financially accessible to people in diverse socio-economic contexts. And it looks like there’s a concerted effort to do just that. Roughly 86% of all EVs in India sold for less than $20,000. A number of those models were just introduced, including MG’s Comet mini car (selling for less than $10,000).
Tata Motors’ best-selling Tiago compact EV also fits this category (selling for about $10,500).
Low operating costs also make them attractive options for shared-mobility companies (ride shares and taxis). Pricing EVs below $15,000 makes them more competitive with combustion engine models.
While the EV market share is only 2.4% of the current total in India, the current trends suggest a growth to 10-15% by 2030. Traditional Manufacturers like Volkswagen, Kia, and Range Rover are preparing to enter the Indian EV Market by 2025, and start-ups like AMO Mobility, Baaz Bikes, and BGauss are launching models specifically designed for India’s urban environments.
The demand surge has prompted automakers to commit 5.3+ billion to manufacturing facilities in India. Domestic companies like Tata Motors and Mahindra are part of this movement, as are Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia.
Investments worth US $1.3 billion from the Indian government are encouraging EV manufacturing and providing discounts for customers. As in North America and Europe, the past decade’s soaring fuel costs and rising consumer awareness of long-term benefits in alternative transportation is driving up EV sales.
EVs are one way to lower global emissions and improve air quality. They also have other benefits: ease and comfort in driving, as well as operating costs. A McKinsey report notes that the vast majority of people are considering EVs for their next purchase, preferring full-battery EVs (49%) over plug-in hybrid EVs (21%).
One of the challenges facing this EV boom is the lack of a widespread charging network. While charging points in the country have increased tenfold, these public charging stations tend to be concentrated in large cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. 75%+ of Indian consumers feel that the charging infrastructure is not yet ready for this boom. Investing in both public and home charging ports will be critical for EV adoption.
India is positioning itself as a guide for other emerging economies that rely on large numbers of two- and three-wheel transportation, like Indonesia, the Philippines, and some African countries.
The Autodesk automotive solution is part of this transformation, supporting companies like Bangalore-based start-up Simple Energy and electric scooter manufacturer Ather Energy.
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