The air pollution level in India is increasing rapidly: the
country is among the bottom five countries in the environmental health
category, ranked 178 out of 180 when air quality is taken into consideration,
on the Environmental Pollution Index 2018. In 2017, the carbon dioxide
emissions in India rose by 4.6%. The ultra-fine particulate matter emitted by
vehicles are among the major factors responsible for this degrading quality of
air. Hence, in order to decrease the air pollution, the Indian government is
focusing on shifting from traditional fuel-based vehicles to electric vehicles.
Moreover, the norms that are being implemented by the government are projected
to result in the increased adoption of these vehicles.
As per a study conducted by P&S Intelligence, the Indian electric car market generated a revenue of $71.1 million in 2017 and is
expected to reach a value of $707.4 million in 2025, advancing at a 34.5% CAGR
during the forecast period (2018–2025). The three types of electric vehicles
are plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV), battery electric vehicles (BEV), and hybrid
electric vehicles (HEV). Among these, the largest demand in 2017 was created
for BEVs and the situation is going to be the same in the coming years as well.
The reason for this is the higher subsidies provided by the government on the
purchase of these vehicles as compared to PHEVs and HEVs.
Government schemes and subsidies are significantly
contributing to the growth of the Indian electric car market. Various
policies related to electric vehicles have been announced by the public authorities
of India in the past few years. Take for instance, the FAME scheme, which was
introduced in 2015 for encouraging the adoption of clean fuel technology cars.
Another target of this scheme was to reduce the upfront purchase value of
electric and hybrid vehicles. Furthermore, NITI Aayog launched a scheme for
building electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Gurgaon-Indira Gandhi
International Airport-South Delhi-Noida corridor in 2017.
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The primary end users of electric cars in India include government
organizations, personal users, and shared mobility providers. Private and
corporate car fleet owners are some other end users of electric cars. Among
these, the largest demand for electric cars in predicted to be created by
personal users during the forecast period because of the growing disposable
income of the users and rising affordability of electric cars. The two types of
lithium-ion batteries that are utilized majorly in electric cars are lithium
iron phosphate (LFP) battery and lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (Li-NMC)
battery.
With the increasing adoption of electric vehicles,
manufacturers are focusing on overcoming the problem of range associated with
these vehicles. While technological advancements have dealt with this problem
to some extent, the range anxiety during inter-city travel still exists among
people, which is why the original equipment manufacturers need to offer
electric cars with enhanced range. In India, currently two companies are the
leading manufacturers of electric cars; TATA Motors Limited and Mahindra &
Mahindra Ltd., both of which are engaged in launching electric cars which are
more efficient.
