Electric two-wheeler registrations fell 16% month-on-month in December to 64,346 units from all-time highs in the festive months of October and November, according to data from the government’s VAHAN dashboard.
The fall in demand can be attributed to customers opting to postpone their purchasing decisions to 2023, besides some large original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) grappling with suspended government subsidies, as well as potential supply disruptions.
Two-wheeler registrations declined more than electric two-wheelers at 39% compared to November, and as a result e-two-wheelers as a percentage of the two-wheeler market was up to 5.7% last month, compared to 4.1% in November, when e-2-wheeler registrations were close to 75,000 units.
The year-end typically sees softening demand in two-wheelers, with customers delaying purchases.“However, this (dip) is not a trend we saw in the electric two-wheeler market till last year in the still-nascent electric two-wheeler market. Discounts and promotions are not very significant at this time in case of two-wheelers, and after the festive and marriage seasons, the second half of December has historically seen weaker demand. It is also worth noting that some of the underperforming OEMs in the EV 2-wheeler market, such as Hero Electric and Okinawa, have not been receiving FAME-II subsidies. This may be contributing to their lower sales performance. It is possible that product or subsidy issues may be playing a role in case of other prominent OEMs, which saw a sharp drop in sales last month,” Jay Kale, senior vice president, Elara Capital, said.
In case of passenger vehicles, the trend is just the opposite when sales pick up, as discounts and promotions offset the loss in the resale value associated with one year of use. While Ola Electric retained its lead in the electric two-wheeler market, and clocked highest registrations at 17,279 units (against 16,362 units in November 2022), accounting for a 26.9% market share, TVS Motor Co. was at the second spot with 9,317 units in sales. Year-to- date (FY23), Ola Electric has the highest market share at 18.8%, followed by Okinawa at 16.2% and Hero Electric at 13.8%. Analysts expect sales to inch higher in January, as conversions improve and supplies ramp up. “VAHAN data comes with a lag so it doesn’t reflect the actual month’s retails. December actual retail for us was higher than November by 26% at 9187 units, versus 7234 units in November. It was a combination of our new exchange offers and new experience centres beginning to fire”, Ravneet Phokela, chief business officer, Ather Energy, said.
TVS Motor saw the highest monthly rise in sales in December (up 15%), followed by Ola Electric (up 6%), and Bajaj Auto (6%), while Ather Energy saw a 2% fall, and Hero Electric‘s sales dipped 10%. OEMs witnessing the largest fall in volumes were Okinawa (-42%), Jitendra EV (-47%), Ampere (-64%), and Revolt (-93%), according to the VAHAN database. Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, and Karnataka saw the highest volumes of e-two-wheeler registrations during December, with 22%, 17.6%, 14%, and 13%, share of the market respectively.
