India’s total EV sales in April reached 100,000 units for the seventh successive month; Ola recorded its best-ever sales figure for a month with 21,573 units; Mahindra replaced Tata Motors as the largest manufacturer in the ePV market with 499 units; and Olectra Greentech took the top spot in e-bus retails.
Retail sales of electric vehicles (EVs) increased by 41% year over year to 109,283 segments in April 2023, the initial month of the current fiscal year 2024 (April 2022: 77,493 units of measure). Two- and three-wheeled Electric Vehicles, the most reasonably priced models in the without-emission class, account for 34% and 60% of the total 109,283 Electric Vehicles sold in April 2023. Let us examine each sub-segment performance in more detail with the company-wide retails.
Sixty-Five Thousand Seven Hundred Thirty Units Of Electric 2-Wheelers, A 23% Yoy Increase
TVS sells 8,717 iQubes, and Ola scores the best-ever monthly retail sales
Retail sales of electric two-wheelers, which total 103 companies in the expanding market, reached 65,730 segments in April 2023, an increase of 23.42% from April 2022’s 53,257 units. In April, the Top 10 accounted for 59,474 units or 90% of all retail sales. Just Original Equipment Manufacturer (Ola Electric) has reported five-figure sales, but seven other companies have recorded retail sales in the four-figure range.
With a strong start in FY2023, Ola Electric, the country’s market boss in FY2023 with a market share of over 21%, maintains its hegemony. Compared to March 2023’s 21,389 units, the business sold an overall 21,573 items in April 2023, marking its biggest monthly sales. With a 33% share of the market in April, Ola has a tremendous advantage over its competitors, having 12,853 units, surpassing TVS Motor Co., which only sells a single item and sold 8,717 iQubes in the previous month.
Ampere Electric, the FY2023 surprise winner and second-place finisher in the Indian electrical two-wheeler market, is in third position. Ampere Automobiles, the EV subsidiary of Greaves Cotton, produced 8,265 units in April. Ampere, which offers three models—Zeal, Magnus, and Primus—is experiencing a persistent increase in requests for its EVs.
Bengaluru-based The fourth spot on the Top 10 list belongs to Ather Energy, which witnessed 7,680 of its savvy electric mobility scooters purchased nationwide. Following it is Okinawa Autotech (3,217), Hero Electric (3,287), and Bajaj Auto (3,607 models of the Chetak scooter each). The latest OEM with four-figure sales is Okaya EV (1,508).
37,500 electric 3-wheelers, up 73% year over year
Three-wheeled Electric Vehicles, the other “low-hanging fruit” of the EV market, delivered an aggregate of 37,500 units, an increase of 73.40% (the month of April 2022: 21,626 units). With more than 330 competitors growing, this swap segment is still expanding at a robust double-digit rate.
With 3,487 units sold in April 2023, Mahindra Last Mile Transportation, the market champion in FY2023 with more than 35,000 units, including the 9% share, has had a solid start to FY2024. The corporation is increasing output while keeping the 9% market position. The Haridwar facility opened a new Treo e-three-wheeler production line on April 18.
MLMM sells six EVs—the Zor Grand, Treo Zor, and the e-Alfa freight for cargo transports. The Treo, Treo Yaari, and the e-Alfa Mini for traveller transportation—benefit from its emphasis on excellent profitability and low cost of maintenance. As per the business, the popular Zor Grand freight Electric Vehicle, available on August 30, 2022, for Rs 360,000, may save as much as Rs 600,000 over five years of ownership.Â
With 2,773 units, YC Electric, among the top electric three-wheeler OEMs in FY2023, keeps its position. This business, which sells five goods—Yatri Super, Yatri Deluxe, and Yatri for passenger responsibilities and E-Loader as well as Yatri Cart for freight operations—benefits from cheap initial product costs (ranging between Rs 125,000 to 170,000 for commuter EVs in addition to Rs 130,000 to Rs 165,000 for cargo services).
Other competitors Saera Electric (1,818), Dilli EV (1,716), Piaggio Vehicles (1,405), and Mini Metro (1,006) have all sold more than 1,400 units apiece. The Top 10 OEMs sold 15,585 units, or 41.56% of the total units sold in this sub-segment.
37,500 Electric Passenger Vehicles, An Increase Of 73%
Mahindra moves to second place with 499 units while leader Tata Motors’ share drops to 73%.
In April 2023, the electric vehicle and SUV market had sales of 5,147 units, which was its second-best monthly total. This is a 185% YoY increase from April 2022’s 1,803 units and 1,946 units less than March 2023’s 7,093 monthly sales record.
Tata Motors, the market champion in electric PV, sold 3,748 units of its Nexon EV, Tigor electric cars, Tiago EV, and Xpres-T (for fleet purchasers), which together make up India’s largest EV range.
The Tata Nexon EV, considered the most popular ePV in India, has a new competitor in the type of Indian manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra, that just unveiled their all-electric XUV400. According to Vahan statistics, M&M, which also sells the e-Verito, recorded shipments of 499 units in April 2023. This put them on top of MG Motor India’s total sales (317 units) and gave it a market stake of 9.69%.
With 226 units, PCA India surpasses BYD India (137 units), which sells the Citroen eC3, an electric variant of the C3 hatchback, to climb into fourth position. In this sub-segment of battery-electric cars and SUVs, luxury automakers contributed 130 units, or 2.52%, to overall sales.
79 electric buses, a 52% YoY decline
PM Electro Mobility sells 16, while OlectraGreentech sells 27.
The number of electric buses sold fell by 52% to 79% in April 2023 from 165 in April 2022, probably because Tata Motors did not participate in any new government procurement bids from the state and central governments.
In April 2023, OlectraGreentech was in first place with 27 units, and then PM Electro Mobility had 16 units. With 13 units apiece, JBM Auto and the EV division of Ashok Leyland (Switch Transportation) are tied for third position. Mytrah Mobility, the only other OEM, contributed ten units to last month’s retail sales.
Conclusion
The Union Budget for 2023 places a lot of emphasis on this area of the automotive sector. Therefore, the increased distribution of the Fuel Economy Maintenance Allowance II subsidy could help boost EV sales. The original component makers also quickly lift the ante on localizing EV parts via complete ground-up creation or technological licenses to recognize the enormous revenue possibilities. This will improve cost optimization, which will increase the affordability of EVs.
