The data from the VAHAN portal says that something is not going well for electric two-wheelers (E2W). Let’s see what it is.
The month of October & November 2022 clocked sales of 77,024 units and 76,598 units respectively.
However, the month of December saw a downtick with 76,162 units.
Remarkable YoY Sales Numbers, But Last Months See Dip in Sales Curve
This is what the numbers are on the market level, when it comes to the individual players, Ola Electric retained the crown, having delivered 17,279 units of the S1 and S1 Pro electric scooters during December.
The market leader sold more than 16,000 e-scooters in each of three months, becoming the first in the industry to do so.
In an official release, the company said that it registered total sales of over 25,000 electric scooters (including undelivered units) during the month and that it raised its market share to 30 percent.
The founder & CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal said the following about the year 2022, EV market and what the next year might bring, he said “2022 has proven to be the inflection point in India’s journey towards becoming a global EV hub. If last year has shown us the true potential of India’s EV market, next year is poised to open the floodgates for EVs in the country.”
With the second spot in the retail sales list, TVS Motor Company registered its highest ever monthly sales figures of 9,317 in December 2022. The company is currently selling its iQube range of e-scooters.
TVS Motor said in a statement that “TVS iQube Electric registered 11,071 units in December 2022 as against sales of 1,212 units in December 2021”.
TVS iQube Electric continued to gain good momentum and has registered 11,071 units in December 2022 backed by the strong order book and increasing acceptance towards electric mobility.
With 8091 dispatches, Hero Electric was in the third in the list.
As per the VAHAN data, Ather Energy was 4th in the list with a delivery 7,646 electric scooters.
The Bengaluru-based startup claimed it sold 9,187 units in December, registering a 389 percent year-on-year growth.
Ravneet Singh Phokela, chief business officer, Ather Energy, said, “We exit the year with strong sales momentum, and despite an industry dip of almost 40 percent in two-wheeler sales, our December retails grew by 26 percent over November,” adding, “With the year turning, continued industry momentum, and some exciting news lined up for us in January, we expect it to be a bumper month for Ather.”
Sales at Okinawa Autotech and Greaves Subsidiary Ampere declined on a month-on-month basis in December. While Okinawa sold 5,279 scooters, Ampere sold 4,408 e-scooters. The spokespeople of both the companies could not be reached for comment.
Overall, electric two-wheeler sales in 2022 hit a milestone as over 6 lakh of them were sold during the year, a fourfold increase from about 1.5 lakh units in 2021.
While Ola Electric ruled the roost by selling 1,09,252 units last year, Okinawa sold 1,01,682 units and Hero Electric 100,123 units. While Ampere came fourth with 79,855 units sold.
Where Did the Buck Stop?
Industry body Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) said that even though the E2W industry’s performance for the last 12 months ending December 2022 looks positive, the volumes are not keeping up with the projections made by NITI Aayog and many other research agencies.
Sohinder Gill, the SMEV director general, said, “Multiple factors have contributed to the sales curve falling in the last two months of the year, the foremost being the blockage of Rs 1100 crore-plus subsidy to the majority of the players for many months, which has squeezed the working capital of major OEMs. Worryingly, if not resolved quickly, this slowdown may have a negative impact on FY24 volumes.”
