Electric 3-Wheelers: Spearheading the EV transition
Electric three-wheeler (E3W) has been the persistent front-runner for EV revolution in India. Among all the electric vehicles sold, E3Ws constitute the major chunk of the EV sales. Albeit, the registered E3Ws in India own a tiny share in the entire E3W stock which is dominated by unorganized players.
Registered sales of EVs in H1 2020 (Jan-June) is 54,577 units. Out of this, a whopping 78% i.e 42,513 units are comprised by E3Ws alone. It is quite evident from the graph below as well, that the shift in EV sales across all months is predominantly influenced by respective monthly E3W sales. April and May were the worst hit months because of COVID-induced lockdown.
Fig. 1: H1-2020 – Sales of EVs v/s Sales of E3Ws

Source: Vahan dashboard, JMK Research
The E3W segment can be categorized into two sub-segments, E3W – Passenger (P) and E3W – Cargo/ Goods (G). E3W (P) receives virtually all demand between the two sub-segments which is well reflected in overall E3W sales. In H1 2020, about 96% of the total E3W sales of 42,513 units belonged to the passenger type category.
Fig. 2: H1-2020 E3W sales – Passenger type v/s Cargo type

Source: Vahan dashboard, JMK Research