In 2016, over 750,000 units of electric cars were registered worldwide, setting a new record and the global electric car stock exceeded two million vehicles, after crossing the one-million mark in 2015. Norway had the most successful deployment of electric cars in terms of market share, at 29 per cent, while China became the largest electric car market in 2016, accounting for more than 40 per cent of the electric cars sold in the world. With 336,000 new electric cars registered, China sold more than double the amount in the USA.
The global players
So where is India here? Not anywhere to make a significant impact yet. Globally, around 95 per cent electric car sales happen in just ten countries—China, United States, Norway, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Japan and Canada. These countries have strong policies and incentives when it comes to owning electric vehicles. The United Kingdom and France have announced that they will ban sales of petrol and diesel cars starting 2040. The UK hopes to have all the cars on the road to have zero emissions by 2050. Norway, a clear leader when it comes to adopting zero-emission policy with one in every three cars sold being electric, has announced that all passenger cars and vans sold will be zero-emission vehicles in 2025.
Major automobile manufacturers are also taking the electric route and have already laid a road map. Volvo Cars has announced that every Volvo it launches from 2019 will have an electric motor, meaning the cars will either be fully electric cars, plug-in hybrid cars and mild hybrid cars. The Swedish carmaker has also announced that it will introduce five fully electric cars between 2019 and 2021.
Hakan Samuelsson, President and Chief Executive, Volvo Cars said, “This is about the customer. People increasingly demand electrified cars and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs. You can now pick and choose whichever electrified Volvo you wish. This announcement marks the end of the solely combustion engine-powered car. Volvo Cars has stated that it plans to have sold a total of one million electrified cars by 2025. When we said it we meant it. This is how we are going to do it.”
Still recovering from the 'dieselgate' scandal, Volkswagen AG, one of the largest automobile manufacturers, has said that it aims to become the leader in electric car production and has unveiled a new range of EVs through the ID brand. The ID range comprises five electric cars that are based on the MEB architecture—ID, ID Cross, ID Lounge, ID AEROe and ID Buzz. These models are slated to be launched between 2019 and 2022.
Luxury carmakers like BMW and Mercedes-Benz also have plans for zero-emission line up. BMW has already launched the i brand with fully-electric i3 city car and i8 hybrid sports car. Mercedes-Benz, which already has pure electric and hybrid cars in its portfolio, has unveiled a new brand for electric mobility, EQ.
India’s status update
Many countries have set targets to go emission free including India, which seeks that every vehicle sold in the country should be a zero-emission vehicle by 2030. But is this viable, with the lack of infrastructure and high initial cost of owning an electric vehicle? India already has manufacturers, who are keen on providing alternative choices for the fossil-fuelled automobiles. As per National Automotive Board, there are a total of 152,161 electric vehicles on roads in India currently.
Mahindra is the only manufacturer to offer fully-electric models for both passenger and commercial segments—e2o Plus, eVerito and eSupro. But then, buyers are still hesitant to buy because of the price (e20 Plus is priced between Rs 7.46 and 11.16 lakhs ex-showroom Chennai, including TCS and Govt. FAME incentive) and the lack of charging network.
Speaking on the Mahindra's Electric Vehicle roadmap, Pawan Goenka, Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, and Chairman, Mahindra Electric, said: "The time has now arrived for EVs to become mainstream and Mahindra has the right technology and products for India. We will actively engage with the government, both at the Centre and the state, municipal bodies and other private players for setting up a robust EV ecosystem. We are also ramping up our investments towards developing the next generation of EV technologies and products that will cater to the smart cities of tomorrow."
In December 2016, Ashok Leyland launched India’s first electric bus, Circuit, designed and engineered entirely in India. The Circuit is built on a simple, mass-market platform that offers the owners minimal operational and maintenance costs. Tata Motors is also working on a fully-electric bus and a couple of electric passenger cars to be launched in sometime.
Roland Folger, Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz India, says that the company is heavily investing in electric mobility technology and if they get the necessary support from the government, Mercedes-Benz can bring electric vehicles to India by 2020. Folger also wants the government to offer better incentives on importing electric cars, till local production is possible.
Big guns
Toyota, which launched the world’s first mass-produced hybrid passenger vehicle Toyota Prius in December 1997, recently announced that they have sold a total of 10.05 million hybrid vehicles as of January 31.
Then Tesla took the world by storm after launching Tesla Roadster, an electric sports car that boasted of amazing power (248 hp) and range (350 km). Tesla redefined the way electric cars are built promising great range without compromising on power. Model S and Model X were built on the same philosophy. And with the upcoming Model 3, Tesla is all set to take the philosophy to the masses.
Renault-Nissan Alliance released a statement recently that the group has sold over 481,151 units of electric vehicles in the first half of 2017. Nissan Leaf is the world's best-selling electric vehicle with more than 277,000 units sold since its launch in 2010.
The future is now
According to the report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), the electric car market will evolve into mass market adoption in the next 10 to 20 years. The IEA has projected that the electric car stock may range between nine million and 20 million by 2020 and between 40 million and 70 million by 2025.
As a country, India needs to be prepared for the electric mobility transformation. From the infrastructure to the policies, a lot needs to be covered before we can expect an emission-free automobile future. India has a huge potential to become one of the world’s largest automobile markets and the government should start preparing for it. Stricter policies, better incentives and quality infrastructure must lead the way ahead.
