Sometimes it takes a bit longer territory. It may be a clean shot or a misadventure, depending on which side you are. In a similar scenario, for years, India’s truck and bus ecosystem has been looking for definitive answers on how to get on track with the Government of India’s push for clean mobility programmes.
Since the first commercial e-bus operations started operations in Himachal Pradesh, in September 2017, India’s electric bus market has evolved substantially over the last five years, with close to 1,031 e-buses deployed in FY21 which grew to 1,850 e-buses by the end of FY22 and 3,000 or so buses deployed in fiscal 2023.
As against an OEM order book of 7,000 odd electric buses by state governments, with deliveries less than half clearly shows the current scale of deployment that needs to be ramped up soon.
States like Maharashtra, Delhi, and Gujarat have been at the forefront of electric bus adoption with the two most significant bus orders from the Government of India-sponsored Convergence Energy Services Limited CESL) maiden 5,450 e-buses across five cities: Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Surat. The first order was won by Tata Motors in all the categories. In the second one 3,650 buses, six OEMs have bid and are in a race to bag the same.
While the electric bus market has shown steady growth in numeric terms, it is less than 1 percent of India’s medium and heavy vehicles market which was pegged at around 241 thousand units at the end of the fiscal year 2022.
According to analysts, the core reason lies in the limited availability of EV finance and other challenges that crop up on the way.
This issue becomes even more significant as the Centre is looking to replace 30,000 diesel buses with electric buses in the next two-three years. This means there's at least 3.5 billion in business opportunities for manufacturers.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Spain's Fersa Group invests in India-based Delux Bearings
Besides theRs100 croreinvestment, the Indian company gets access toadvanced technologies and bearings with arange of applications that willhelpinits global growth strategy, writes Manobhava Baruah.
Tata Autocomp to open compact dual-clutch transmission plant
Amidthe country’s growing need for personal mobility with easy manoeuvrability, comes the demand for vehicles with automatic transmission. Tata AutoCompisready tomovein writes Shruti Mishra.
Pankaj Munjal-backed Hero Motors raises equity from GEF Cap
The company willinvest Rs1,500 crore over thenextthree years andit expects 60 percent ofits turnover to come fromelectric vehicle parts. Itaims to becomea Global EV Solutions Company from India
New age thermoplastics for next-generation EV batteries
Saudi-based global materials major SABIChas developed cutting edgein fire-resistant polymers and flame-retardant materials that comply with various EV battery safety standards across the world.
Switch Mobility to meet growing e-bus demand with fresh capex
Oncourse for abillion-dollar business, the company is exploringa possibility of operating satellite factories across the country to serve different geographies, write ShahkarAbidi and Ketan Thakkar.
Kia India to invest Rs 2,000 crore in EVS, to introduce new e-RV in 2025
New investmentto drive R&D, infrastructure development and manufacturing capabilities. The company willlocally produce EVsin India with possibility of exports as well, writes Mayank Dhingra.
"The government has given enough time for indigenisation but the industry has not taken it seriously"
Amitabh Saran, Founder and CEO, Altigreen, shares his views on problems inthe EV industry and battery localisation solutions with Amit Vijay M.
TATA MOTORS SEES ONE INTWO CARS SOLDAS EVS BY 2030
The company aims to offer wider choices withnew EVs that may straddle a pricebracket of Rs20to 40lakhinthe coming years, writes Ketan Thakkar.
MG Motor India in expansion drive, to invest $100 million
The investment willbe usedtoramp up existing production capacity from1.2to1.4-15lakh units per annum atthe automaker's Halol plantin Gujarat, writes Ketan Thakkar.
"Technology and its multiplier effect are driving business transformations and customer experiences"
Technical Centre India is one of Continental’s largest research and development centres in the world, andasa Centre of Competence’ it also develops customised products for the BRIC countries.
