In recent years, India has attracted a large number of investment from multinational car manufacturers, but the lack of electric vehicle infrastructure and high vehicle production costs have become "stumbling blocks" for the development of the Indian electric vehicle market.
Recently, the European automaker Stellantis Group announced that it will cooperate with the Indian government to launch the first electric vehicle model adapted to the Indian market by 2023. At the same time, Toyota also said that it will build an electric vehicle parts production plant in India to expand its domestic market.
It is understood that Stellantis Group has entered the Indian auto market since 2015. So far, it has invested more than US$1 billion in the Indian auto market and launched Chevron, Jeep and other auto brands. The group said it plans to make India an exporter of the company's auto industry chain.
At the same time, in early May, Japan's Toyota Group also stated that it will invest 48 billion rupees in India to build an electric vehicle parts production base, mainly producing powertrain components for pure electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles. At the end of May, South Korea's Kia announced that it would launch its first electric vehicle model in India and started the pre-sale business of this model.
In addition to multinational car companies, Indian local companies are constantly moving. In May of this year, the Indian auto parts manufacturer announced that it had signed a cooperation agreement with the German car manufacturer Volkswagen. Volkswagen will provide battery system components, power batteries and other products for electric vehicles.
At the same time, Tata Motors, a local company that currently occupies the dominant position in the Indian electric vehicle market, also stated that it will further integrate the upstream and downstream industrial chains and build a local electric vehicle industrial chain as soon as possible.
From the perspective of the industry, the unprecedented activity of the Indian electric vehicle market is closely related to the strong support and high subsidies of the Indian government. The Indian government plans to increase the proportion of sales of electric vehicles to 30% by 2030. Up to now, 18 of India's 28 states have announced regional electric vehicle development goals, and relevant supporting documents are being issued intensively. In addition, the Indian government has repeatedly said that it will provide subsidies for electric vehicle manufacturers, which can amount to billions of dollars in total.
However, although the Indian government has a clear goal, and domestic and foreign car companies are also "enthusiastic", in fact, the development of the Indian electric vehicle market is far less than expected.
In its latest report on the electric vehicle industry, the International Energy Agency pointed out that the development of the Indian electric vehicle market is relatively slow. The automobile development target is even lower than the global average. By the end of 2021, the number of electric vehicles in India is just over 1 million.
The industry generally believes that there are multiple "cruxes" in the Indian electric vehicle market: on the one hand, the current price of fuel vehicles in India is still far lower than that of electric vehicles, and the lack of reliable models makes it difficult for Indian electric vehicles to attract consumers and continue to grow in sales; On the one hand, the infrastructure such as charging piles for electric vehicles in India is relatively scarce, which also increases the difficulty for the popularization of electric vehicles.
Currently the best-selling Nexon electric car under Tata Motors in India is priced at about $19,000, which is higher than the price of the top-spec gasoline car under the brand and is unbearable for ordinary Indians. At the same time, the Indian government imposes high tariffs on imported auto parts products, which also restricts the development of internationally renowned car companies such as Tesla in India.
In addition, according to the calculations of Indian industry research institutions, to achieve the electric vehicle development goals set by India, the required number of public charging piles needs to reach 2.9 million. However, as of June last year, there were less than 1,000 charging piles in India, far from meeting demand.
Generally speaking, the single model of electric vehicles in India, the high volatility of battery costs, the low willingness of consumers to purchase, and the insufficient charging infrastructure have all seriously hindered the electrification of Indian transportation.
