Electric 2-wheeler sales grow 21-fold in 3 years — who are the Top 3 players?

The electric vehicle (EV) industry in India recorded a massive increase in 2022 and saw a total of 9,95,319 EVs being sold across different segments, an increase of 208 percent compared to 3,22,871 units in 2021. The electric two-wheeler (e-2W) segment has been the biggest contributor to this growth and constituted 4 percent of overall two-wheeler sales in 2022.

According to new vehicle registration data from the government’s VAHAN portal, the e-two-wheeler industry retail sales crossed the six-lakh mark in 2022 (as on December 30, 2022). The e-2W industry grew almost 21-fold (around 2076 percent) in the last three years. The e-2W retail sales grew from 28,280 units in 2019 to 6,15,365 units in 2022. The segment recorded a 305 percent YoY growth against 2021’s figures at 1,51,685 units.

Moreover, the total e-2W sales of 2022 alone account for nearly 73 percent of the past 10 years' sales of 8,46,259 units. In terms of monthly sales, e-2W sales stood at 28,193 units in January 2022, crossed the 50,000-unit mark for the first time in March 2022 at 51,950 units and recorded the industry’s highest-ever total sales of 76,733 units in November 2022.

Ola Electric emerged as the top manufacturer in 2022 with nearly 1.08 lakh units sold, followed by Okinawa Autotech, Hero Electric, Ampere Vehicles, Ather Energy, TVS Motor, Bajaj Auto and others. Interestingly, only three manufacturers — Ola Electric, Okinawa Autotech and Hero Electric — managed to record sales of more than 1,00,000 units each.

Homegrown e-2W manufacturer Ola Electric sold 1,08,130 vehicles in 2022 and emerged as the leader in the country’s electric two-wheeler space. The Bhavish Aggarwal-owned company accounts for more than 17 percent of the e-2W market share in India.

The electric two-wheeler maker sold over 25,000 units in December 2022. The company, which has been expanding on the direct-to-consumer front, also revealed that it is on track to open 200 outlets by the end of March 2023. Currently, it has 100 experience centres in operation across the country.

Aggarwal, Founder and CEO of Ola Electric, said 2022 has proven to be the inflexion 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," he added.

In December 2022, Hero Electric registered 7,180 units of its products, outselling Okinawa, which registered 4,963 units in the same month. However, the latter’s yearly registrations were marginally more at 1,01,366 units while the former’s settled at 1,00,123 units. Outperforming both these brands and clinching the top spot in 2022 was Ola Electric, which registered 1,08,130 units last year.

Okinawa Autotech sold 4,963 units in December 2022 largely because of its large portfolio of high- and low-speed e-scooters. The company lost its leadership position by a margin of 6,764 units as Okinawa was running ahead of Ola Electric in the January-October period with total sales of 87,340 units. Ola, on the other hand, had sold 75,603 units in the same 10 months. However, the company's sales saw a decline in November at 9,063 units and in December, which was the lowest for the company in the entire year.

Hero Electric revealed that its e-2W sales crossed over one lakh units in 2022. The company also said it aims to achieve the target of 50 lakh EVs in three years and continues to invest in production capacity enhancement, expanding dealerships, and training and re-skilling private garage owners to build an ecosystem.

Hero Electric was also the first company to cross the 10,000-unit sales mark, selling 13,028 units in March 2022. Currently, Hero Electric has more than 700 sales and service outlets and trained roadside mechanics of EVs. The company has also partnered with various NBFCs to facilitate easy finance solutions for EV buyers.

Ampere Vehicles stood fourth in the Indian e-2W ecosystem, having recorded total sales of 79,592 units in 2022. Greaves subsidiary Ampere declined on a month-on-month basis in December and sold 4,408 e-scooters last month. The company recorded sales of 10,064 units in October and its best monthly sales at 12,257 units in November.

Bengaluru-based electric scooter maker Ather Energy reported that it sold 9,187 units in December 2022 and recorded cumulative sales of 51,192 units in the last year. Ravneet Singh Phokela, Chief Business Officer of Ather Energy, in a statement, said, "We exit the year with a 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."

In November, Ather inaugurated its second manufacturing plant at Hosur in Tamil Nadu. With this new plant, the company expects its capacity to jump to 4,20,000 units per annum, up 250 percent from the previous 1,20,000 units.

He further added, "Tier 2-3 markets continue to show strong adoption rates, which augurs extremely well for EV adoption across the country." Ather Energy continues to expand its retail footprint, adding 14 new outlets, and is now present in 70 cities with 89 experience centres, Phokela added.

TVS’ sole EV in the Indian market, iQube Electric, recorded the company’s highest sales of 11,071 units in December 2022 backed by the strong order book and increasing acceptance of electric mobility. TVS sold 1,212 units of iQube Electric in December 2021.

The Chennai-based EV maker was at sixth place with total sales of 46,277 units in 2022. TVS iQube, which was refreshed in May 2022, is priced between Rs 98,564-1.08 lakh, including the FAME and other state subsidies for the entry-level iQube and iQube S variants, respectively. This e-scooter is now available in 33 Indian cities, which is expected to grow to 52 cities soon.

Like its rivals, Bajaj Auto also depends on a single EV. It sold a total of 24,767 units of its Chetak electric scooter in 2022. Bajaj Auto has also announced that will set up a subsidiary called Chetak Technology Ltd (CTL), which will operate the Chetak EV business vertical as a separate entity.

This new subsidiary firm will focus on the design, development and sale of EVs in India as the company plans to sell its EVs only via a network of exclusive Chetak showrooms. As per Bajaj Auto, these showrooms will exclusively showcase the company’s Chetak EVs, provide test rides and register for bookings and delivery.