15-18% of bus sales to be electric by 2030, says Switch Mobility’s Mahesh Babu

Electric vehicle penetration in India’s bus segment is likely to improve to 15-18% by the end of this decade, according to Switch Mobility Chief Executive Officer Mahesh Babu. 

“Electrification in buses was around 3.7% last year. We are looking at electrification in buses to reach 15-18% by FY30. The annual electric bus market should be about 25,000 units in FY30,” Mahesh Babu told Autocar Professional.

The industry is banking on government policies and incentives that can reduce the cost of electric buses, as well as on favourable ownership economies, to push the adoption. The total cost of ownership for electric buses is estimated to be 15-20% lower than ICE and CNG buses over a life span of 15 years.

The electric adoption is likely to be driven by the public sector such as state transport undertakings that procure electric buses through two models - gross cost contract (GCC) and outright purchase. Under the GCC model, bus makers or operators manage the operation and maintenance of the buses, with STUs paying a per-kilometre cost.

“Most of the electrification is happening in state transport. Last year, the total bus market was around 1 lakh units, out of which electric buses were 3,700 units. STUs bought only 14,000 buses last year and most of the 3,700 electric buses were given to them,” he said.

Babu believes both the FAME scheme and PM-eBus Sewa are enabling electric vehicle adoption in buses, and both will continue to exist in the future. While the FAME 2 scheme expired on March 31, the industry is expecting the third phase of the scheme to be rolled out soon.

FAME scheme provided direct upfront or operation cost subsidies to STUs or other entities buying an electric bus. PM-eBus Sewa, which focuses on cities with a population of less than 5 million, offers financial support based on per-km for operating electric buses for 10 years.

Meanwhile, Babu noted that Switch Mobility has an order book of 1,500 electric buses, which the company expected to deliver in the next one-year period.
Ashok Leyland-owned Switch Mobility has rolled out two electric bus models in India - EiV 12 and EiV 22 Double Decker. The automaker will also launch one low-floor electric bus for city rides that is being developed on a new platform. The company will supply 950 units of the new low-floor model to Delhi Transport Corporation this year.