Indian Battery Electric Vehicle Sales Climb

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Article written with support from Jaan at The EV Universe.

Within a surging Indian car market, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are starting to make significant gains. India is the world’s fourth largest car market. September 2022 was the best month in the history of the personal vehicle market in India, with 354,744 cars sold. Two-wheeler sales, a good indication of rural buying power, rose 12.9% to 1,735,199 units.

This is the context for an Indian BEV sales climb up the charts. The first half of 2022 saw India register the highest ever half-yearly battery electric vehicle sales. Over 20,000 units were sold. June 2022 is now the all-time best sales month, with 4,451 BEVs registered.

The Indian BEV market is dominated by Tata Motors, which has 92% market share. The Tata Nexon EV is the best-selling product, followed by the Tata Tigor EV.

With a larger battery pack, the new Nexon EV Max, which was introduced recently, achieved record monthly sales of 3,070 units. Tata Motors sold over 13,000 Nexon EVs during the first six months of the year. The Tata Tigor, with an improved battery and motor, has doubled its sales year on year. The vehicle is described as an “improved product with right value proposition.” Car buyers are getting a better car, at a cheaper price. 

Indian Battery Electric Vehicle Sales Climb
Indian battery electric vehicle sales climb. Chart courtesy of Auto Punditz.

From the chart above, it looks like Indian BEV volume is starting to hit the vertical — though, on a small volume.

Readers will note that H1 2022 is 5 times higher than H1 2021. In H1 2022, BEVs achieved 2.2% penetration of the overall passenger vehicle market, compared with only 0.3% in H1 2021. The mix of vehicle styles is moving steadily from sedans to SUVs — 73% SUV, 27% sedan.

Chart courtesy of Auto Punditz.

Although Mahindra Motors was a more significant player in the BEV market from 2018–2020, it appears to have dropped off the chart. One wonders: What happened? Tata Motors commands 92% of the market share, followed by MG Motors at 6%. All other manufacturers have become fringe players as of now.

MG and Kia have slowly shrunk — MG from 26% in 2020 to 6% currently. Kia/Hyundai from 26% to 2% currently. After its facelift, MG ZS EV sales have settled at around 300 units per month. From its peak in July 2021 at 493, it plummeted due to the wait for a refreshed model. Sales are expected to improve now that the new MG ZS EV is available.

We are looking forward to more exciting news from the world’s largest right-hand-drive market!


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David Waterworth

David Waterworth is a retired teacher who divides his time between looking after his grandchildren and trying to make sure they have a planet to live on. He is long on Tesla [NASDAQ:TSLA].

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