Gadkari reiterates annual EV sales target of 1 cr units by 2030

Electrification in India’s automotive sector is likely to gain further momentum, with an increase in affordability factor and is expected to hit the 1 crore (10 million) unit milestone by the end of this decade, the Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari reiterated.

This would represent a close to six-fold jump from the 16.8 lakh (1.7 million) electric vehicles sold in the financial year 2024.

“India’s electric vehicle market is expected to grow to 1 crore annual sales by 2030 and create 5 crore jobs….the market would be potentially Rs 20 lakh crore by 2030 across the entire EV ecosystem,” Gadkari said while speaking at SIAM’s annual session.

The government, which has been working since last year to decarbonise the transport sector, sees a potential of 1 crore electric vehicle volume annually by the end of the decade, the minister noted. 

Currently, electric vehicle adoption is at its nascent stage with overall penetration close to 7%. Two-wheelers accounted for 56% of the electric vehicle sales in the last financial year, while three-wheelers constituted 38%.

Affordability and limited charging infrastructure have been major hurdles in the faster adoption of electric vehicles.

A decline in the cost of the battery, which contributes significantly to the price of an EV, and further localisation, is expected to improve the affordability factory going forward.

Despite being in the early stages of lithium-ion battery manufacturing, Gadkari is of the opinion that India has the potential to become the largest lithium-ion battery exporter globally by the end of the decade.

The minister has also said the cost of electric vehicles is likely to be the same as that of vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Heavy Industries HD Kumaraswamy, today said that the government is now increasingly focusing on improving the charging infrastructure and integrating it with renewable energy sources.

There are more than 12,000 public electric vehicle charging stations in India but lag behind many developed economies in charger-to-vehicle density.