Mass Market Velocity

Bajaj rises to the top in e-scooters by tapping the lower end of the market. Can it stay there?

- SURAJEET DAS GUPTA

With a 36 per cent share of the sub-₹1 lakh electric scooter market, Bajaj Auto has successfully played in the volume market, which used to be Ola Electric's stronghold, and for the first time risen to the top of the overall electric two-wheeler market with a nearly 27 per cent share.

It is a heady ride made possible by the time-honoured Chetak brand, one of whose electric variants, Chetak 2901, debuted in June with a price tag of ₹96,000, backed by a massive increase in distribution network.

The two-wheeler giant had only 14 per cent of the electric two-wheeler market in May this year, but its 26.8 per cent in December till date is comfortably above those of its chief rivals Ola (19.2 per cent) and TVS (23 per cent).

Ola and TVS were ahead of Bajaj till November. So, is December a flash in the pan for Bajaj? Or, can it hold on to the top slot?

It surely wants to. To do so, it has fired a fresh salvo to capture a larger share of the market. Last week it launched two new electric scooters in the premium segment, where it entered the business with the Chetak 35 series priced at ₹1.20 lakh and above.

The scooter, based on a new frame and powered by a 3.5 kWh battery, offers a higher range of 153 km, compared to 90 km in the earlier model, and has one of the largest boots (35 litres) in the segment.

It comes with a roomier 80 mm longer seat, TFT display in the top variant, and with map support and smartphone connectivity.

"While the e-scooter market is still evolving, it can be broadly segmented on the basis of price into sub-₹1 lakh and above ₹1 lakh. Chetak has built a leadership position in the sub-₹1 lakh segment with the Chetak 2901. However, our presence in the above 1 lakh segment is relatively weaker."