Electric car sales grow by 53 per cent over last year in 2021
As per data released by the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicle, over 2.36 lakh electric vehicles were sold in India in the last financial year i.e. FY2020-21. This number includes electric two-wheelers, three-wheelers and four-wheelers. While the depressed economic activity in the past year has led to a decline in electric two and three-wheelers sales, the electric four-wheeler segment has seen significant progress.
Electric four-wheelers account for a minor share of the EV market, only 3,000 EV four-wheelers were sold in 2020. But this has seen a massive 53 per cent growth in the last year, rising to 4,588 units. The industry body says that the main factors behind this uptick have been the EV policies rolled out by numerous states across the country. The body says these policies will help create a larger EV ecosystem in the country and should initially be focused on demand generation initiatives to shore up volumes.
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The two-wheeler and three-wheeler markets are still the biggest volume drivers in the EV segment. With sales of 1,43,837 units, the electric two-wheeler segment contracted by 6% in FY21, having registered sales of 1,52,000 units in the FY20. Of these, 40,836 high-speed and 103,000 low-speed were sold. Although separate numbers aren't provided, the high-speed electric two-wheeler segment has seen growth, unlike the low-speed segment. A factor in the growth of high-end two and four-wheeler EVs has been the improvement in charging infrastructure. There are around 1,300 charging stations in India currently with many corporate entities having entered this field.
Mirroring their IC-engined counterparts, sales of electric three-wheelers have been most affected by the move towards personal mobility and reduced economic activity due to the COVID19 pandemic. In FY21, only 88,378 electric three-wheelers were sold against 140, 683 units in FY20. This is a significant 37.18 per cent contraction in sales. However, this segment is poised for progress in the next few years driven mainly by B2B sales for last-mile delivery needs.
