Greener powertrains key drivers behind India’s record sales in FY24, says Tata Motors' Shailesh Chandra

The record growth of the Indian passenger vehicle market for FY24 can entirely be attributed to the "greener powertrains like CNG and Electric Vehicles," says Shailesh Chandra, MD of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility business. 

Chandra also underscored the importance of the last financial year as a significant milestone for the industry, as it crossed the 4 million mark for the first time, signifying its remarkable progress.

At the company's 79th Annual report, Chandra said that with the highest‑ever sales of 4.2 million vehicles, the PV industry recorded a growth of 8.6% over FY23.

“This growth can be attributed almost entirely to the rising demand for greener powertrains as CNG vehicles and EVs sales grew 55% and 70% over FY23, respectively. Introducing several new nameplates during FY24 also contributed to the industry's growth,” he added.

Tata Motors also posted its third consecutive year of record-breaking performance, in line with the industry's new peak.

Chandra told shareholders it was also an excellent year for Tata Motors. In the financial year 23-24, the company posted its third successive year of highest‑ever sales volumes of cars and SUVs, with wholesales of 5,73,541 units (up 6% over FY23) and retail sales growing 8.4% over FY23 (VAHAN‑based).

“We improved our market share and consolidated our position as a strong number 3 player in the automobile industry. The business also recorded its highest‑ever turnover with an annual revenue of Rs 52,353 crore, growing by 9.4% over FY23. It also became more profitable, delivering the highest ever EBITDA and a healthy improvement in EBIT margins by 100 basis points,” added Chandra. 

The head of Tata Motors' car division attributed this sustained growth to the company’s multi‑powertrain strategy and sharp focus on green technologies.

CNG and EVs' penetration into the company’s overall portfolio increased by 29%, more than doubling in the last three years.

Tata Motors introduced an industry-first, twin‑cylinder CNG technology in the range of compact vehicles that offered no compromise on the boot space, addressing a major concern of customers.

This twin-cylinder CNG technology was made available in the Altroz, Tiago, Tigor, and Punch, helping the company boost its CNG sales volume by 120% over FY23. Tata Motors continues to lead the electric car market, with over a 70% market share.

With 1,50,000 cumulative EV production, a milestone achieved by few car manufacturers globally, Tata Motors sold 73,844 EVs during the year to register a growth of 48% over FY23

“A customer‑centric strategy with smart product enhancements enabled us to achieve #1 or #2 position in almost every addressable vehicle segment that we cater to,” asserted Chandra.

On the way ahead, Chandra says he expects the Indian passenger vehicle industry (growth) to moderate towards a "long-term secular growth," after three consecutive years of growth.

"Trends seen in FY24 are expected to accentuate with rising customer preference for safer, smarter, and greener vehicles powered by CNG and batteries," he added. 

Keeping pace with rising vehicle sales, the company also expanded its network of sales and service touchpoints to 1,456 and 1,000, respectively, going closer to customers to meet their mobility needs.

Chandra said due investments were made in expanding capacity and building. In the last financial year, Tata Motors accelerated its efforts towards fulfilling its sustainability target of attaining net zero emissions by 2040.

"We made good progress towards reducing our Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions as per SBTi (Science Based Targets Initiative) glide path. The operations at plants were made greener with the increase in utilisation of energy generated from renewable sources and implementation of a more sustainable waste disposal system," Chandra noted.

The new manufacturing facility at Sanand was made operational within just a year of taking it over from Ford. It creates additional production capacity, which can be expanded to 4,20,000 units, and provisions a cumulative annual manufacturing footprint of 1 million cars and SUVs.