Future of electric vehicle

Why is Future of Electric Vehicle looks so promising in India?

India’s focus on next-gen mobility has definitely taken on legs under the current government, but the ‘National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020’ was actually unveiled in 2013 under the previous Congress-led government. That puts into perspective the concerted efforts across the aisle for green mobility and electric cars. Since the country has been willing to adopt a 360-degree approach in order to turn into an EV nation.

In December 2019, in the Climate Risk Index 2020 released by the environment think tank, Germanwatch, India’s rank has worsened from the 14th spot in 2017 to 5th in 2018 in the global vulnerability ladder. This makes it all the more reason for India to make electric cars and vehicles a priority in the fight against the reliance on fossil fuels.

While the initial push was seen towards making two-wheelers and three-wheelers electric, the bigger need is for electric public transportation and cars. Despite the existing challenges and ambiguity inherent in the sector, major auto manufacturers are now looking at this widely untapped sector with hope.

So What Is An Electric Car?

For the uninitiated, an electric car is just a car propelled by one or more electric motors using energy stored in rechargeable batteries, instead of burning petrol or diesel internally and exhausting fumes. There are broadly three kinds of electric cars at present:

1. Solar-powered electric cars and vehicles
2. Hybrid electric cars powered by a mix of internal combustion and batteries 
3. Electric cars with on-board battery packs also known as battery electric vehicle (BEV) 

More often than not, electric cars in the context of mobility and environmental conservation refer to battery electric vehicles, but may also refer to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV)

In the Indian context, automobile manufacturers have announced electric four-wheelers such as Hyundai Kona Electric, Mahindra e-Verito, Mahindra e2o, Porsche Taycan, Tata Tigor EV 2019, MG ZS. But many more will be needed if India is to take meaningful steps towards becoming an EV-first nation. 

With enthusiasm rising around the chances of Elon Musk’s Tesla launching in India in 2020, many local and global auto manufacturers have started testing the waters in the Indian market for electric cars.

Will Electric Cars Gain Popularity In India? 

In the last few years, trends suggest a rise in interest among the common masses for electric cars in comparison to electric two-wheelers and ICE or petrol/diesel cars, as seen on Google Trends.

Industry leaders consider electric cars to be a promising option for Indian audience for many reasons.

Akhil Aryan, CEO and cofounder ION Energy believes that timely adoption coupled with the electrification of the existing vehicles and growth of charging infrastructure will create a shift, the impact of which will be felt in metropolitan cities especially given that pollution has reached catastrophic levels.

Further, Zoomcar founder Greg Moran added that with the median age of Indians being 27 years, the younger generation is driven for innovation, sustainability and environmental conservation. At the same time, by manufacturing vehicles, components and batteries together, various established conglomerates and startups are ensuring indigenous availability of products.

What Are The Advantages Of Electric Cars Over Fuel Cars?

At a fundamental level, electric cars offer a dramatically lower operating cost compared to conventional internal combustion engines. On average, electric vehicles are 75-80% cheaper from fuel and maintenance perspective, which is an important consideration for many consumers who have high usage. This reality holds true across form factors because it’s materially cheaper to charge a battery compared to refuelling a conventional liquid fuel tank.

Moreover, EVs have 75-80% fewer moving components and this ultimately translates to a much lower maintenance bill. Over and above the robust operating cost angle, EVs also possess an inherent advantage when it comes to performance and driveability.

What Are The Challenges In Consumer Adoption Of Electric Cars?

Breaking away the old norms and establishing a new consumer behaviour is always a challenge. It is common to find users anxious about the speed and range of EVs. Thus, a lot of sensitisation and education is needed, in order to bust several myths and promote EVs within the Indian market, Zoomcar’s Moran told Inc42.

Apart from this, there are a number of challenges in the adoption of electric vehicle cars in India in the near future. These include:

1. Charging infrastructure
2. Battery performance
3. Supply-demand gap
4. Creating the closed-loop

Lack of battery cell manufacturing

There is a complete absence of primary battery cell manufacturing in India which poses the risk of increasing our trade deficit. At the moment, most manufacturers rely on batteries imported from Japan, China, Korea and Europe. Hence, the Indian market needs encouragement for indigenous technologies that are suited for India from both strategic and economic standpoint, such as aluminium fuel cells.