EV sales in the fast lane

Having notched 50 percent of FY22 sales in Q1 itself, the EV industry could be headed towards the 800,000-unit mark in FY23. A much-expanded model parc, high fuel prices, state subsidies and sops under FAME II and growing consumer awareness is driving the overall growth, writes Ajit Dalvi.

- Ajit Dalvi

If the green shoots of retail recovery across segments are evident in the 27 percent year-on-year growth in the IC engine-powered automobile industry in the first quarter of FY2023, what’s also evident is the massive surge in demand for their truly eco-friendly and green siblings – electric vehicles (EVs). On-ground retail sales data, gleaned from FADA President Vinkesh Gulati’s recent tweets reveal that cumulative EV sales across four segments — cars, two- and three-wheelers and commercial vehicles — have soared by an estimated 686 percent to 211,398 units in the April-June 2022 period (Q1 FY2022: 26,833 units). These numbers, being retail sales, relay the real-world EV story as compared to the wholesale numbers released by vehicle manufacturers, which essentially constitute despatches to dealers across the country.

As per FADA-sourced industry statistics, retail sales of EVs hit their highest at 429,217 units in FY2022, up 218 percent on FY2021’s 134,821 units, and up 155 percent on FY2020’s 168,300 units. From the looks of the fast-increasing EV sales in the recently-concluded first quarter (April-June 2022) of the ongoing fiscal year, FY2023 bids fair to set a new record and also beat FY2022 numbers by a large margin. Having crossed the 200,000unit sales milestone in Q1 itself and 49 percent of total FY2022 EV sales, one can surmise that given the overall EV industry’s momentum, last fiscal’s total should be crossed in Q2 itself while charging onwards towards a 750,000800,000 total sales landmark in FY2023.