With most of the company focusing on the future of automobiles i.e. Electric Vehicles, the electric vehicle sales rose to 20 per cent in Financial Year 2020 against 1,56,000 units as demand for vehicles powered by the conventional internal combustion engine. As per the records by the Society of Electric Vehicle Manufacturers, 1,52,000 electric two-wheelers, 3,400 electric passenger vehicles and 600 electric buses were sold during the financial year 2019-20. As per the data from the previous Financial year 2018-19, 126,000 electric two-wheelers, 3,600 electric passenger vehicles and around 400 electric buses were sold which make a total of 130,000 units. Hence from the above data, we can see the rise in sales of Electric vehicles. The figure of sales regarding conventional powered passenger vehicles which included petrol, diesel and CNG models witnessed a dropped off about 15 per cent to 2.63 million in the financial year 2018-19, while that of two-wheeler sales slumped to 16 per cent to 16.55 million, as per data shared by SIAM.
Especially if we talk about the two-wheeler space, the industry witnessed rivalry between the two strong players – Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor Company during last year. When Bajaj introduced the electric Chetak, in the same segment TVS introduced its iQube edition for the limited marketplace. Not only Bajaj and TVS but also Bengaluru-based start-up Ather Energy and Hero Electric, India’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer, also introduced new models of electric bike in the previous financial year.
Not only the two-wheeler manufacturers introduce the concept of Electric vehicle in the country, but also many automotive giants introduces electric four-wheeler segment. They 4four-wheeler electric vehicle noticed a drop of 5.5 per cent in sales volume i.e. up to 3,400 units. With the introduction of two new electric passenger vehicles – MG ZS EV and Tata Nexon EV which were launched in the last quarter of the year faced a major impact on sales due to the coronavirus pandemic. As per the official reports by both the companies, nearly 200 Nexon EVs are estimated to have sold by Tata Motors followed by the MG Motor which has clocked sales of 116 units, with further 2000 units on hold due to pandemic condition.
It is estimated that the decrease in sales of an electric vehicle is mainly due to the lack of bulk purchase of Electric cars in 2019-20. The E-Taxi segment is also planning for using electric vehicles nearby in future, SMEV said in a statement.