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Mint
25-05-2025
- Automotive
- Mint
E-buses under PM E-drive to be used now for intercity, tourist travel
Inter-city routes and tourist trails may open up for electric buses which are now confined to cities under a central scheme, two people familiar with the plans said. The ₹10,900-crore PM E-Drive scheme rolled out in September 2024 to expand city transport may soon be expanded for this purpose, the people said on the condition of anonymity. On Friday, the government allotted 10,900 buses under the scheme, which aims at a total of 14,028 buses. 'The allotment announced on 22 May will first be tendered, followed by demand generation and tendering of more electric buses to remaining cities," one of the two people cited above said. 'Then more buses will be deployed for intercity purposes, and for some tourist destinations, for instance, hilly areas." The plan to permit electric buses for intercity travel and tourism purposes will be implemented after the competitive bidding for all cities is completed, the officials mentioned above said. Also read | Govt rushes to find demand for electric trucks under PM E-Drive after bare FY25 Under the scheme, nine cities with over 40 million people are eligible to receive subsidized e-buses, including New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Surat and Pune. On 22 May, heavy industries minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said Bengaluru will get 4500 electric buses, Hyderabad 2,000, Delhi 2,800, Ahmedabad 1,000, and Surat 600, in the first phase. Tendering of the first phase of buses allotted on 22 May will begin in 4-6 weeks, the second official said. Competitive bidding for the supply of the first phase of buses allotted on 22 May will begin in 4-6 weeks, the second official said. Incentives for each bus sold Typically, the cost of an electric bus is approximately ₹1 crore. Under the PM E-drive scheme, the Centre is planning to dole out a ₹20-35 lakh incentive for every electric bus sold. The development assumes importance as nearly 40% of the scheme is set aside for the rollout of 14,028 electric buses till FY26. Transport-related emissions in cities and along highways currently account for 10-15% of the pollution in our cities, said Viral Thakker, partner & leader - sustainability & climate, Deloitte South Asia. Also read | ARAI likely to plan division of auto testing agencies allocation 'There are several advantages of using buses for intercity travel - a large and efficient network of buses can replace cars and provide alternative transportation options to passengers. Electric buses are also a good addition to tourism locations as India looks to develop a number of sustainable tourism destinations," said Thakker. Subsuming schemes The PM E-drive scheme, announced in September 2024, subsumed the Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme (EMPS), which ran from April 2024 to September 2024. The EMPS and PM E-drive scheme came after a decade of electric mobility incentivization under two iterations of the FAME scheme. FAME stands for Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric (and Hybrid) vehicles. The PM E-drive scheme, set to run for two years till the end of FY26, marked a change in the focus of incentivisation of electric mobility, as it focused on incentivising public transportation to become electric, along with a focus on sunrise sectors such as electric trucks and ambulances. It also incentivised electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers. The scheme mandates manufacturers to provide electric vehicles to consumers at a lower price. The government then reimburses manufacturers. Also read | More than 6 lakh electric 2, 3-wheelers sold under PM E-Drive scheme since April While electric two- and three-wheelers under the scheme are given direct incentives on purchase, the procedure to incentivize electric buses is little more complex. First, the government gathered demand for electric buses from state governments. After this, it finalized allocation to each city mentioned in the scheme. The next step is to conduct competitive bidding for such buses, where state transport utilities would bid for such buses and secure them at affordable rates.
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Unregistered electric scooters flood the streets in Chennai, raise fire and insurance risks
A growing grey market of unregistered electric vehicles is rapidly reshaping Tamil Nadu's EV landscape—and not in a good way. At the heart of this shift is a regulatory loophole that exempts EVs with motor power below 250W from mandatory RTO registration and insurance. Local manufacturers exploit this clause to flood the market with ultra-cheap e-bikes priced as low as 30,000—less than a third of mainstream branded EVs. But these savings come at a steep price."The main risk is poor battery quality," said S T Ravichandran, an automobile engineer with a German firm. "Batteries account for 40%–50% of an EV's cost, so grey market sellers use recycled lithium-ion cells with weak thermal control. This raises chances of overheating and fire, especially while charging or on long rides."Many unbranded EVs are also falsely labelled 250W to dodge registration, he added. "They use regular-capacity batteries meant for higher-power vehicles. Makers cut costs by skipping quality cells and Battery Management Systems (BMS). Loosely soldered joints, no fuses, and fake '250W' stickers make these bikes unsafe and misleading."Without type approval or load testing, these EVs skip vital checks for stability, braking, and shock absorption. Some models show serious chassis vibration even at 20 km/h. They're not just unstable—they're unsafe, say transport looming risk is insurance. Since these vehicles are not registered with RTOs, they cannot be insured. "If one of these vehicles hits a pedestrian or gets into an accident, there's zero third-party liability coverage. That's a huge public safety blind spot," said R Srinivasan, an the risks, these unregistered EVs now outsell regular ones three to one, with monthly volumes hitting 20,000 to 25,000 across Tamil Nadu, compared to just 3,000 for registered models. Their rise coincides with another major setback for India's clean mobility push: the gradual slashing of the FAME II 2023, the subsidy shifted from a per-kWh model to a fixed amount. Under EMPS from April 2024, buyers get a flat 10,000 per vehicle—pushing many cost-conscious customers toward cheaper, unregulated EV brands Ola, Ather, and Bajaj cut prices to stay competitive, but the reduction in govt support dragged down sales. S Rajvel, State Chairperson of the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA), urged the govt to plug the loophole and amend norms to prevent the market from tilting in favour of unchecked, unstable slump in EV sales contrasts sharply with a 14% rise in petrol and diesel vehicle registrations in Tamil Nadu. Another key reason, say commuters, is the lack of public charging stations. "Range anxiety remains high—people fear getting stranded on highways or in traffic if the battery dies," said S Kamal, a transportation activist. Tamil Nadu currently has just 1,500 public EV chargers, compared to more than 5,800 in Karnataka.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
IDTechEx Report Forecasts US$90B Market Opportunity for Micro EVs by 2045
Boston, Massachusetts--(Newsfile Corp. - March 5, 2025) - Micro EVs currently make up the majority of global electric vehicle sales. They are among the most electrified vehicle segments globally, with over 1 in 4 sales of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and microcars in 2023 being EVs. Despite this, the new report from market intelligence firm IDTechEx, "Micro EVs 2025-2045: Electric Two-Wheelers, Three-Wheelers, and Microcars," predicts significant growth of the global market is still to come. IDTechEx forecasts micro EVs will grow into a US$90 billion market opportunity by 2045. Electrification of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and microcars vs commercial vans and passenger cars. Source: IDTechEx To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Micro EVs are electrified versions of small vehicles. While there is no formal definition of micro EVs, IDTechEx includes electric two-wheelers (E2Ws) like scooters and motorcycles, electric three-wheelers (E3Ws), and microcars in this category. Micro EVs can seamlessly navigate dense urban areas, are less affected by traffic congestion, and have smaller parking requirements. They are most often used for travelling over short distances within cities at low speeds. Pranav Jaswani, IDTechEx Technology Analyst and author of the new report, explains: "In the same way that cars have seen rapid electrification in recent years, micro EVs have also seen a prodigious uptick in adoption. The utilization of micro EVs as low-cost city-based transport solutions for passengers and cargo make them ideal targets for electrification. They are predominantly used for short trips at low speeds, requiring less battery and drivetrains than other vehicle types. IDTechEx's report finds that batteries in micro EVs rarely exceed 20 kWh, with only some of the largest microcar models doing so. Most E2Ws and E3Ws even have batteries of 4 kWh or less – 15 to 20 times smaller than an average electric city car's battery but facilitating travel in urban areas just as well!" Jaswani explains that governments are also getting more involved in encouraging the uptake of micro EVs, most commonly through purchase grants, which help reduce or eliminate the difference in upfront costs between a combustion and electric vehicle. Purchase grants are an especially important implement for a micro EV market which tends to be highly price-sensitive. For example, low-cost E2Ws in Asia can be as little as US$500-1,000 each, so even a small price premium of a few hundred dollars over its combustion equivalent would significantly dent sales. Most major governments now have some type of micro EV grant scheme, though these vary in quantity and effectiveness. India stands out as a market where grant schemes have had greatly shaped the domestic micro EV landscape. The government's FAME II and EMPS schemes from 2019 to 2024 made E2Ws and E3Ws cheaper than their combustion alternatives, initiating a rapid growth phase that has seen India become one of the key market leaders for micro EVs. The "Micro EVs 2025-2045: Electric Two-Wheelers, Three-Wheelers, and Microcars" report also highlights other government measures driving adoption. Growing commercial applications are also driving micro EV market growth. Micro EVs are developing into an important link in the road transportation of goods, and their use will be a major step towards decarbonizing the cargo industry. Micro EVs are particularly well-suited for last-mile logistics, where vehicles are generally lighter-duty and have lower capacity requirements but need to cover urban routes while parking frequently in a stop-start operational cycle. To find out more about this new IDTechEx report, including downloadable sample pages, please visit For the full portfolio of electric vehicles market research available from IDTechEx, please see About IDTechEx IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging technologies and their markets. For more information, contact research@ or visit Contact Information: Charlotte Martin+ To view the source version of this press release, please visit
Associated Press
05-03-2025
- Automotive
- Associated Press
IDTechEx Report Forecasts US$90B Market Opportunity for Micro EVs by 2045
Boston, Massachusetts--(Newsfile Corp. - March 5, 2025) - Micro EVs currently make up the majority of global electric vehicle sales. They are among the most electrified vehicle segments globally, with over 1 in 4 sales of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and microcars in 2023 being EVs. Despite this, the new report from market intelligence firm IDTechEx, " Micro EVs 2025-2045: Electric Two-Wheelers, Three-Wheelers, and Microcars,' predicts significant growth of the global market is still to come. IDTechEx forecasts micro EVs will grow into a US$90 billion market opportunity by 2045. Electrification of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and microcars vs commercial vans and passenger cars. Source: IDTechEx To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Micro EVs are electrified versions of small vehicles. While there is no formal definition of micro EVs, IDTechEx includes electric two-wheelers (E2Ws) like scooters and motorcycles, electric three-wheelers (E3Ws), and microcars in this category. Micro EVs can seamlessly navigate dense urban areas, are less affected by traffic congestion, and have smaller parking requirements. They are most often used for travelling over short distances within cities at low speeds. Pranav Jaswani, IDTechEx Technology Analyst and author of the new report, explains: 'In the same way that cars have seen rapid electrification in recent years, micro EVs have also seen a prodigious uptick in adoption. The utilization of micro EVs as low-cost city-based transport solutions for passengers and cargo make them ideal targets for electrification. They are predominantly used for short trips at low speeds, requiring less battery and drivetrains than other vehicle types. IDTechEx's report finds that batteries in micro EVs rarely exceed 20 kWh, with only some of the largest microcar models doing so. Most E2Ws and E3Ws even have batteries of 4 kWh or less – 15 to 20 times smaller than an average electric city car's battery but facilitating travel in urban areas just as well!' Jaswani explains that governments are also getting more involved in encouraging the uptake of micro EVs, most commonly through purchase grants, which help reduce or eliminate the difference in upfront costs between a combustion and electric vehicle. Purchase grants are an especially important implement for a micro EV market which tends to be highly price-sensitive. For example, low-cost E2Ws in Asia can be as little as US$500-1,000 each, so even a small price premium of a few hundred dollars over its combustion equivalent would significantly dent sales. Most major governments now have some type of micro EV grant scheme, though these vary in quantity and effectiveness. India stands out as a market where grant schemes have had greatly shaped the domestic micro EV landscape. The government's FAME II and EMPS schemes from 2019 to 2024 made E2Ws and E3Ws cheaper than their combustion alternatives, initiating a rapid growth phase that has seen India become one of the key market leaders for micro EVs. The 'Micro EVs 2025-2045: Electric Two-Wheelers, Three-Wheelers, and Microcars' report also highlights other government measures driving adoption. Growing commercial applications are also driving micro EV market growth. Micro EVs are developing into an important link in the road transportation of goods, and their use will be a major step towards decarbonizing the cargo industry. Micro EVs are particularly well-suited for last-mile logistics, where vehicles are generally lighter-duty and have lower capacity requirements but need to cover urban routes while parking frequently in a stop-start operational cycle. Charlotte Martin
