Electric Vehicle to be a True Opportunity for Future; Says KPMG Report

Rising environmental consciousness, along with skyrocketing fuel prices have catalysed the Electric Vehicle sales by over 116 percent from 2020 to 2021 with 6.6 million. Due to this, number of electric vehicles has reached to 16.5 million as of 2021.  As the fledgling EV ecosystem matures at a rapid pace, a critical facilitator of EV adoption is ready availability of slow and fast chargers ensuring easy access to efficient and cost- effective charging.

A recently published report by Netherland based firm, KPMG says “with an estimated 45-50 million EVs on Indian roads by 2030, the potential opportunity for a pure play charging business is enormous. India’s e-mobility journey is on a fast track, with an estimated 45-50 million EVs on road by 2030. The growth is currently being led by two-wheeler (2W), three-wheeler (3W), and bus segments.”

While EV penetration in India is gaining traction, the sales are projected to grow. Along with this, people who are buying the vehicles will be in dire need of good charging station which can be a good business opportunity. While the Electric vehicles are increasing day by day, roughly 1,700 public charging stations are now functioning across the country.

“Development of a robust charging network has gone hand-in-hand with accelerated EV adoption across the world, and we believe a similar trend is expected to play out in India. India’s EV trajectory is rising rapidly, with a threefold increase in EV sales in the last fiscal year. While the EV growth story is currently led by two wheelers (2W) and three wheelers (3W) segments, four-wheeler (4W) segment is showing enormous promise, with several new model launches expected over the next two years.” Report said.

Thanks to policies changes that are being done by government, the speed of charging infrastructure development in India is picking up. With 45-50 million EVs expected on Indian roads by 2030, the potential for a pure play charging business is immense. Not unexpectedly, investment activity in charging firms has increased globally, with a number of pure-play charging companies rising funding through IPOs, strategic investors, and venture capitalists at huge values.

The reports also said that demands in India‘s charging infrastructure are unique as the vehicle mix is dominated by 2Ws and 3Ws, as opposed to 4Ws across the rest of the world. Further many EV users have limited access to private charging, and a robust public charging infrastructure would be critical to enable widespread EV adoption across India.

“Batteries in the 2Ws and 3Ws are not designed to handle fast charging and battery swapping is likely to be the prevalent mode for use cases requiring quick charging turnaround. 4Ws come in a variety of battery sizes and utilise a range of charging standards. Depending on the use case and battery size, both AC and direct current (DC) charging solutions are suitable. Buses are likely to be charged exclusively through DC fast chargers, due to their large battery sizes and high-power requirements,” noted the report.

There are a number of common factor that all types of vehicles share. Charge point locations, ease of charging, affordability, integration with multiple payment modes and network reliability are some of them. The key to surviving in the value-conscious Indian market for a charger producer is to provide charger quality at a low price. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) would need to provide customised products, invest in innovative designs, or broaden their scope to offer value-added services such as integrated software for remote monitoring, predictive maintenance, and so on in order to differentiate themselves in a likely commoditised business. The most critical component for a CPO is a dense network of charging outlets positioned in high-traffic key places. Co-location or revenue sharing arrangements with retail chains, malls, restaurants, and other businesses would aid in acquiring access to these premium sites and controlling real estate expenses. Furthermore, charging network interoperability and providing value-added services like as payment, navigation, and booking, among others, are critical for overall client experience and stickiness.

In the near future, there are likely to be a few issues linked to utilisation and, in some circumstances, commercial sustainability. However, in the medium to long term, product and service-led innovation that allows firms to differentiate them from competitors will be vital to gaining a head start in a major component of the EV ecosystem that will fuel the rise of e-mobility in India.