Overall EV sales in November were down 14 percent YoY; Mercedes-Benz overtakes BMW in luxury EV sales.
08 Dec 2024 | 4380 Views | By Ajit Dalvi, Autocar India
After a heady month of October 2024, when the electric passenger vehicle industry achieved record monthly retail sales of 11,165 units (up 47 percent YoY), November 2024 sales at 8,596 units (up 14 percent YoY) appear rather tepid in comparison. Nevertheless, they are 40 percent better than the 17-month low ...
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After a heady month of October 2024, when the electric passenger vehicle industry achieved record monthly retail sales of 11,165 units (up 47 percent YoY), November 2024 sales at 8,596 units (up 14 percent YoY) appear rather tepid in comparison. Nevertheless, they are 40 percent better than the 17-month low of 6,148 units in September 2024 and have helped EV sales to surpass its entire CY2023’s retails of 82,558 units. As per Vahan retail sales data (December 1, 2024) total January-November 2024 sales of electric cars, SUVs and MPVs at 89,557 units are a 19 percent YoY increase over the year-ago sales of 75,051 units.
CY2024 has been somewhat of a roller-coaster in terms of monthly sales. It opened with strong sales of 8,481 units, dropped 11 percent month on month to 7,519 units in February, hit 9,769 EVs in the FY2024-ending month of March, dropped sharply to 6,148 units in September, and then hit its best-ever monthly numbers in October with 11,165 units. Let’s take a detailed look at the movers and shakers in this segment of the Indian EV industry.
Tata Motors: 4,196 units, down 18 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 49 percent / November 2023 - 68 percent
Tata Motors is clearly feeling the heat of the growing competition. As per Vahan data, the longstanding EV market leader sold 4,196 units in November 2024, down 18 percent YoY (November 2023: 5,124 units). This performance translates into its market share dropping sharply to 49 percent from 68 percent in November 2023 (5,124 units). In October 2024, Tata Motors had sold 6,449 units (up 15 percent YoY) which gave it a market share of 58 percent.
The company has the largest portfolio of EVs in India comprising the Nexon EV, Tigor EV, Tiago EV, Punch EV and the Curvv EV. Tata Motors’ cumulative January-November 2024 retails at 57,084 units are up by 4 percent (January-November 2023: 54,947 units) and give it an 11-month market share of 64 percent. The company, which had sold 60,004 EVs in CY2023, needs to sell 2,920 units more to surpass that total in CY2024.
Along with expanding its EV sales network across the country, Tata Motors is also offering six months of free charging at any of the over 5,500 Tata Power charging points across the country, as a value add.
JSW MG Motor India: 3,126 units, up 227 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 36 percent / November 2023 – 13 percent
The MG Windsor, the brand’s third EV in India after the ZS EV and Comet, has clearly added tailwinds to the company’s sales. At 3,126 units, November 2024 sales are the company’s best-ever EV monthly numbers and up 15 percent on October 2024’s 2,712 units.
MG Motor India is also benefiting from its innovative Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) program for its EVs. This subscription model lowers the per-kilometre expense significantly, reducing the initial acquisition cost to ensure an economical ownership experience. Under BaaS, the Windsor is available at Rs 9.99 lakh + battery rental at Rs3.5/km. Similarly, the Comet and ZS EV are also available under the BaaS program.
The company is also upping the ante on the sales network front by expanding to Tier 3 and Tier 4 cities as well as rural markets across India. There are plans to set up 100 new touchpoints by the end of 2024, and setting up 520 touchpoints in 270 cities by the end of March 2025.
This strong showing last month gives JSW MG Motor a market share of 36 percent in November (up from 13 percent in November 2023), and 20 percent for the January-November 2024 period’s cumulative retails of 17,614 units. Not surprisingly, the company has easily surpassed its entire CY2023 total of 9,523 units.
Mahindra: 547 units, up 1 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 6 percent / November 2023 – 7 percent
Mahindra, the third-ranked EV carmaker, sold 547 units of the XUV400 in November 2024, up 1 percent on year-ago sales of 542 units. This gives the company a 6 percent market share for November and a 7.46 percent share for the January-November 2024 period with total sales of 6,685 – up 101 percent YoY (January-November 2023: 3,573 units). Mahindra had sold 4,267 XUV400s in CY2023. What should give a fillip to sales in the coming months is that the XUV400, in mid-November, achieved a top 5-star Bharat NCAP crash test rating.
Mahindra, which will have added manufacturing capacity of around 100,000 units for its new born EVs by end-March 2025, plans to invest Rs 12,000 crore towards its EV programme. Last month, Mahindra launched the first of its two ‘Born Electric’ SUVs – the Be 6e (priced from Rs 18.90 lakh) and the XEV 9e (priced from Rs 21.90 lakh) – built on the INGLO platform. Deliveries of the two new e-SUVs are slated to commence in end-February or early March 2025.
BYD: 326 units, up 133 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 – 6 percent / November 2023 – 2 percent
BYD India, which sells the Atto 3 SUV, Seal sedan and more recently the new eMAX 7 MPV maintains its No. 4 position in the market. In November 2024, BYD sold 326 EVs, up 133 percent on November 2023’s 140 units but below festive October’s 377 units, which has been its best-ever monthly sales. November retails take the Chinese carmaker’s cumulative 11-month sales to 2,487 units, 475 EVs more than its entire CY2023 retails of 2,012 units.
In an effort to further improve traction in the Indian market, BYD is exploring the introduction of a midsize electric SUV priced around Rs 20 lakh and is believed to be currently evaluating multiple models from its global portfolio. If it materializes, BYD India could enter the sub-Rs 20 lakh EV segment by the second half of 2025 and take on Hyundai’s upcoming Creta EV and Maruti Suzuki’s e Vitara. The BYD e-SUV is expected to be showcased at the Bharat Mobility Show to be held in New Delhi in January 2025.
Citroen: 82 units, down 36 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 0.95 percent / November 2023 - 1.71 percent
After hitting best-ever monthly sales of 388 units in September 2024, and following it up with 255 units in October, Citroen registered retail sales of just 82 units in November 2024, down 36 percent YoY. Citroen just has one EV on sale in India – the eC3 – and it sees a fair number of bookings from EV fleet operators. Between March and June 2024, the eC3 has received bulk orders for over 7,000 units from Blusmart, OHM E Logistics and Cab-E. In the first 11 months of CY2024, Citroen had clocked cumulative sales of 1,794 units, which 102 units shy of its CY2023 sales of 1,949 units.
Hyundai: 20 units, down 88 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 0.95 percent / November 2023 - 1.71 percent
Hyundai has hit its lowest monthly EV sales of just 20 units of the Ioniq 5 in November 2024, down 88 percent on the 166 units sold in November 2023. The company had registered three-figure retails for the first three months of this year but having discontinued the Kona in India in the middle of the year, it has seen sales slow down substantially since then. At present, Hyundai’s sole EV is the Ioniq 5. Hyundai, whose cumulative January-November 2024 sales at 889 units are down 40 percent YoY (January-November 2023: 1,480 units), had sold a total of 1,608 EVs in CY2023.
However, expect Hyundai to bounce back strongly soon. The first quarter of next year will see Hyundai launch the much-awaited Creta EV, the all-electric avatar of the Creta midsize SUV, which is currently the best-selling model in its segment and has recorded wholesales of 113,913 units between April-October 2024. The recently listed company has outlined strategic EV launch game-plan which comprises four models including a mas-market model.
Kia: 67 units, up 76 percent YoY
Market share: November 2024 - 0.77 percent / November 2023 - 0.50 percent
Kia India, like Hyundai, has seen a marked drop in its EV sales. Kia has sold 323 units between January and November, which gives it a minimal market share of 0.36 percent, down from the equally minimal share of 0.53 percent in CY2023 (438 units).
Till September, the company had only a single EV in the market – the EV6. In October, the company launched the six-seater EV9 SUV, priced at Rs 1.3 crore. The EV9 is being brought through the CBU route and is now Kia’s flagship offering in the country. The EV9 has no direct rivals in India, but it gives some competition to luxury electric SUVs such as Mercedes EQS SUV, EQS SUV, BMW iX and Audi Q8 e-tron.
Luxury EV sales: 2,533 units in January-November, up 12 percent
After achieving robust sales in the festive month of October (311 units, up 39 percent), demand for luxury EVs dropped sharply by 48 percent in November 2024 to 228 units. Nevertheless, the cumulative sales of 7 OEMs for the first 11 months of CY2024 at 2,533 units are up 12 percent YoY (January-November 2023: 2,271 units). These seven OEMs combined sales in CY2023 were 2,643 units which means they need to sell 110 units in December 2024 to surpass last year’s luxury EV sales, which should be achieved in the first 10-odd days of this month.
BMW India, the luxury EV market leader (1,060 units in January-November 2024), has sold 94 units in November, down 67 percent YoY, and saw Mercedes-Benz India with 97 units go ahead, as it also did in October. BMW India has a luxury EV market share of 41 percent in November and 42 percent (948 units) for the first 10 months of this year.
Mercedes-Benz, meanwhile, had an EV market share of 42 percent in November. Its January-November 2024 sales (833 EVs) are up 93 percent YoY (January-November 2023: 431 EVs) and give it a 33 percent share of the luxury EV market in the year to date. Importantly, for the German carmaker, it has raced past its CY2023 total of 516 units.
While luxury EVs accounted for 2.65 percent of the overall EV market in November, their share of the India electric car and SUV market in the first 11 months of this year is marginally higher at 2.82 percent.