| | JUNE 20228W hile Electric Vehicles (EVs) have been around for a long time, the level of innovation and interest in the space has been witnessed only over the past decade. Infact, EVs are now being looked as at future of vehicles due to its enhanced energy security, reduced reliance on crude oil, better air quality and lower greenhouse gas emissions. EVs are therefore, emerging as the preferred clean technology for the future of mobility. This has led to improvement of event the advancement in the segment especially the battery and charging technologies, which will soon also witnessed reduced costs to further give this a push.The opportunity of EV has long been seen as a game changer for the automotive segment in India. A desire to reduce pollution levels and dependence on oil imports has bolstered the case for EV adoption. India's post-liberalization journey has encompassed rapid urbanization, migration and economic growth. India held the worst pollution record in 2019, with 21 out of the 30 most polluted cities in the world, also the country has alarmingly over two million pollution linked deaths annually, the most in the world and air pollution is an immense drain on the country's resources, costing India the equivalent of 5.4 percent of GDP. Despite the compelling cases for adoption of EV, the success of EVs so far has been constrained by weak customer appetite and infrastructure roadblocks, among other factors. Many EVs introduced in India have fallen short of customer expectation with concerns lingering on costs, range, speed, battery life and battery technology. The fallout of the COVID outbreak and subsequent lockdown has also taken a harsh toll on the automotive industry, further impending the shift to EVs as several projects have been deferred. While EVs represent less than one percent of the overall market, the silver lining is that there is considerable room for growth. Also India is one of the leading players globally in unit EV sales, thus any movement in EV volumes is likely to have a large impact on global EV penetration. OPPORTUNITIES Light electric mobility is likely to lead the EV growth story in India, with the pace of adoption for two wheelers and three wheelers expected to pick up in the coming years. In India two wheelers dominate EV sales given their economic viability both in terms of price and fuel economy. Intra-city transport buses are also ripe for EV adoption. These segments are likely to be followed by fleet cabs and then others. Though Indian automotive industry has been grappling with slowdown long before pandemic hit, it still remains one of the largest automotive markets globally in terms of sales. With continuously rising fuel prices and environmental hazards, policy-makers in India too have been actively pushing for EV adoption. Government think-tank NITI Aayog has specified that Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicle (FAME II) and other policies supporting EV are THE EVOLVING ELECTRIC VEHICLE LANDSCAPE IN INDIA: OPPORTUNITIES & CHALLENGESBy Vikas Aggarwal, Director, IPower BatteriesINDUSTRY INSIGHTS
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