Mumbai: After a phase of mixed signals globally, India’s electric vehicle (EV) market is seeing fresh momentum. According to Tata Motors, the shift is being driven by real improvements that customers can actually feel. At the same time, Tata Motors is betting on offering a wide EV portfolio. From hatchbacks to SUVs and even all-wheel-drive options, the company is trying to cater to different buyer needs. Its long-term ambition is to push EV penetration in India to 20 percent, while aiming for around 50 percent market share.
In a conversation with Zee News’ Lakshya Rana, Vivek Srivatsa, Chief Commercial Officer at Tata Motors, spoke about global EV trends, India’s growing adoption, the company’s market share strategy, and key challenges like pricing and charging infrastructure. Read the full interview below:
Q: How do you see the global EV market trends right now?
Vivek Srivatsa: Globally, the EV market is going through several pulls and pushes. China is clearly leading the way. The level of innovation there is very high. They offer a wide range of price points, body styles, and brands.
In the rest of the world, I would say there is some plateauing. There is a lot of uncertainty, driven more by geopolitics than customer mindset. Growth in India has started picking up again. In the last quarter, the industry was close to touching 20,000 units per month. This growth has come because three key factors have improved.
First, customers are now getting real-world range of over 350 km. Second, fast charging has become more common. Chargers of 60kW and 100kW are now available, even on highways. People can charge in 15-20 minutes and continue their journey. Travelling 500 km between cities is no longer a problem.
Third, companies are now offering lifetime battery warranties. Earlier, there was confusion. People thought an 8-year warranty meant the battery would stop working after that. Now, with lifetime warranties, customers have more peace of mind.
Because of these factors, most EV growth in India is happening in cars priced above Rs 15 lakh. For the industry to grow further, we need more adoption in the entry-level segment below Rs 12 lakh.
Q: What is Tata Motors’ current EV market share? What are your expectations going forward?
Vivek Srivatsa: In the last few months, our market share has started improving again. We had lost some share because many new players entered the market. But recently, our share has come back to around 46 percent. This is even before new products like the Punch.ev and Sierra EV come in.
Our focus has never been only on market share. From the time we launched the Nexon EV in 2020, our goal has been to grow the EV industry in India. We want to increase EV penetration and overall volumes. We have worked not just on products, but also on the entire ecosystem. This includes localisation, supplier development, software, and charging infrastructure. EVs cannot succeed with just good products. The ecosystem is equally important.
We offer a wide range of EVs because customers want choice. Some want hatchbacks, some want SUVs, and some want all-wheel-drive models. Our long-term ambition is to drive EV penetration to 20 percent in India and achieve 50 percent market share. We are already at 46 percent and can reach 50 percent again.
With Punch.ev, we expect strong growth. We are targeting around 30 to 50 percent growth over pre-facelift Punch volumes.
Q: India still depends heavily on coal for power. Are EVs just shifting pollution from cities to power plants?
Vivek Srivatsa: A lot of studies across the world have shown that even with coal-based power, EVs are more environmentally friendly over their lifetime compared to fossil fuel vehicles. Also, India has an aggressive plan to increase green energy. In the next 10 years, we could see 80-90 percent of power coming from green sources.
EV adoption and clean energy growth must happen in parallel. We cannot wait for power to become fully green before pushing EVs. These are parallel tracks. We cannot do them one after the other. Both need to progress together.
Q: What policy changes can make EVs cleaner and more accessible in India?
Vivek Srivatsa: We need more rooftop solar adoption and better incentives for people to generate green energy. The government should also continue improving green power generation. At the same time, we need to focus on entry-level EV adoption. Around 65 percent of car sales in India are below Rs 12 lakh, but EV penetration in this segment is less than 0.5 percent.
We need to make EVs more accessible in this price range. That is where products like Punch.ev can help by addressing key concerns like range, charging, battery life, and price.
Q: Charging remains a big challenge, especially in apartments. How are you addressing this?
Vivek Srivatsa: We have worked a lot on community charging. Many apartments are not ready to provide chargers for every parking slot. A practical solution is to create shared charging stations. For example, in a building with 100 homes, you can have around 10 chargers in a common area. People can use them in rotation.
Q: What steps has Tata Motors taken to expand charging infrastructure?
Vivek Srivatsa: We have partnered with multiple charging infrastructure companies. We have set up Tata.ev Mega Chargers at key highway locations. Currently, we have over 130 locations with around 450 charging points. We plan to expand this to 800 chargers soon.
We have also introduced Tata.ev Verified Chargers. These are audited chargers that meet certain quality standards. Users can filter these chargers on our app. They offer better uptime, power quality, and user experience. This makes it easier for customers to plan trips and rely on charging infrastructure.
Q: Are hybrids a better solution for now in markets like India?
Vivek Srivatsa: Hybrids are a bridge technology. They are not new and have been around for 20–30 years. But they still use fuel, so emissions remain. They can help customers move away from traditional petrol and diesel. We are also seeing people trying CNG for similar reasons. Cost plays a big role in adoption. Eventually, EVs need to reach price parity. That is when large-scale adoption will happen.
Q: Does Tata Motors have any plans to introduce hybrid vehicles?
Vivek Srivatsa: Not right now. We have invested heavily in EVs and will continue to focus on them. If the market demands it in the future, we can consider it, but there are no current plans.
