Heena Sharma Blog

The year 2019 was a mix of ups and downs for the electric vehicle (EV) sales in the country. The coming year is expected to be better, with the entry of more electric cars and Chinese entities’ entry, bringing down the average cost. The second phase of the Rs 10,000-crore scheme of the central government, termed Faster Adoption and Manufacturing for Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME II), offers higher incentives to higher powered products. It excludes lead acid battery-powered two-wheelers and mandates that e-scooters should have 80 km per charge and a minimum top speed of 40 kmph, with at least 50 per cent localisation in manufacturing. This has left a large share of two-wheelers out of the incentive, says CRISIL Research. Recently, Union minister Prakash Javadekar told Parliament about 285,000 buyers of electric/hybrid vehicles had been supported by a subsidy of Rs 360 crore under FAME. Sohinder Gill, director-general, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV...

Korean auto major Hyundai is planning to bring fuel cell electric vehicles to India. The company has already started a feasibility study as part of the plan. Hyundai Nexo, which is already available in many markets, could be the first launch. The company claims Nexo is the world's first dedicated hydrogen-powered SUV and that it has a range of close to 380 miles, highest for any fuel-cell or electric vehicle in the market. S S Kim, Managing Director and CEO, Hyundai Motor India said, "progress for humanity with zero emission mobility is our responsibility and part of the vision to make a long-term positive transformation for our future generations. We have initiated the feasibility study for fuel cell electric vehicle in India and promise to bring the ultimate solution with zero emission mobility". On Tuesday, Hyundai announced its "Strategy 2025". As a part of it, the company aims to sell 670,000 electric vehicles annually. "The goal is to e...

About 87 per cent of Indian drivers and vehicle owners would buy an electric vehicle (EV), if that helped reduce air pollution, according to a new survey. Only 12 per cent would switch to EVs to avoid using petrol and diesel, according to the survey commissioned by Climate Trends, a Bengaluru-based nonprofit, which polled more than 2,000 Indian drivers, owners and those who planned to buy a car. In 2017, India sold about 900,000 EVs, 4 per cent of the volume of diesel and petrol vehicles sold. India, however, sold less than a million electric vehicles–4 per cent of IC engine vehicles sold–in 2017, according to the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV), an EV manufacturer’s body. Of these, more than 93 per cent were electric three-wheelers and 6 cent twottwo-wheelers. Read our full coverage on air pollution in India