Mercedes-Benz expects electric vehicles to account for over 20 percent of its Indian sales in 2027, with Chairman Ola Källenius pointing to new products, faster charging and improving infrastructure as reasons for greater confidence in demand.
Speaking at a media roundtable in Pune, Källenius said the company expected to finish 2026 with EVs accounting for a high-single-digit share of its Indian sales.
“I think it will be a double digit number next year. India is going electric," he said.
The expectation comes as Mercedes-Benz launches the electric GLC and expands its second generation of electric vehicles. Källenius said the response to the SUV demonstrated that customers were becoming more receptive to the technology.
“We have a thousand pre-orders more or less unseen… [despite customers] not even knowing the price,” he said.
The first wave of EVs had attracted early adopters, but demand across markets had developed unevenly and fallen short of expectations. Källenius said that had not discouraged Mercedes-Benz from investing in the next generation.
The latest products offered a stronger proposition through longer range, shorter charging stops, lower energy consumption and everyday convenience, he said. “The fundamentals, they reside in the product.”
Källenius cited the electric GLC’s range of more than 700 kilometres and its ability to add substantial range during a short charging stop. He said charging infrastructure remained incomplete, particularly across a country as large as India, but was improving.
Källenius also pointed to lower energy costs, quieter operation and the ability to cool the cabin before entering the vehicle as benefits relevant to Indian buyers.
He said growing customer awareness of these features would help drive sales.
Mercedes-Benz plans to offer an electric alternative across every meaningful model position by the end of the decade, from its entry range to the S-Class.
Asked whether India could receive more EVs than previously planned, Källenius said the company would bring products where it saw an opportunity.
“Every meaningful portfolio position where we see a chance in India will come to India.”
The optimism follows a more cautious period for EV adoption globally. Källenius said his assessment of India would have been less confident had the conversation taken place two years earlier.
He nevertheless cautioned that complete electrification worldwide remained many years away. Mercedes-Benz would continue offering electrified combustion vehicles alongside its expanding electric range while meaningful demand existed.
For its next phase of EV growth, however, he said the response to the new products was encouraging.
“You can feel there’s something in the air. The customers are moving.”