Autos

Bajaj Auto’s electric drive gets a GoGo accelerator – The Financial Express


Bajaj Auto accelerates in the EV space with strong gains from its GoGo electric three-wheeler and Chetak e-scooter. With rising market shares and breakeven in both segments, Bajaj is closing in on rivals like M&M and Ola, reinforcing its leadership in India’s fast-growing electric mobility market.

After a smart turnaround by Chetak, Bajaj Auto has got another ace up its sleeve in the electric vehicles space. Within three months of its launch, electric three-wheeler brand GoGo has brought the Pune-based legacy player within touching distance of long-time market leader Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M). From 1,300 units in December last year, the gap between the two narrowed to just 123 units in April.

In fact, with a 36% market share in the L5 category (high-speed electric 3-wheelers), Bajaj Auto was in pole position, as reported on the Vahan portal. In the non-electric category, the company was the leader with a 74% share at the end of FY25.  

Boasting a segment-best 251km range, the GoGo series of passenger three-wheelers is attracting buyers for its competitive price of Rs 3.26 lakh and higher drive range than its peers. M&M’s Treo Plus, which is the main competitor, is priced higher at Rs 3.44 lakh and has a drive range of 150km.

Samardeep Subandh, President –Intracity Business Unit, Bajaj Auto, observed that within two months of the launch, the Bajaj GoGo had helped the company capture a significant 36% share of the EV commercial space. “We have an industry-leading 39% in the passenger segment,” Subandh said.

Analysts at Nuvama believe Bajaj is targeting a larger format for the GoGo to address demand in rural areas. “The L5 industry will continue to grow at 4% to 6% levels, primarily driven by the increasing penetration of EVs,”they observed. The electric three-wheeler segment grew by 18% in CY24 to 691,303 units. At 57%, this segment has seen the highest penetration of electric powertrains than any other automotive segment. To put it simply, every second three-wheeler sold in India is an EV.

In the two-wheeler space also, Bajaj is cruising.  After finishing third in the electric two-wheeler space in CY24, Chetak, a brand it resurrected five years ago, has clinched the top spot in two of the four months of CY25 as per retail sales data shared by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA).

Bajaj Auto has improved its market share in the electric two-wheeler segment to 24% in January-April, from 22% clocked in CY24, as per FADA. The gains came despite massive discounts and step-down variants rolled out by the former leader of the pack Ola Electric.

While the Chetak range starts at Rs 98,500, having a drive range of 123km, Ola’s range starts at Rs 60,000, offering a drive range of 75km. iQube, the entry model of TVS Motor, the third brand in the top three, is priced higher than the Chetak at Rs 100,000 though it has a smaller battery and therefore a shorter drive range of 94km.

A few months ago, Bajaj introduced a new product platform on the Chetak which allowed the scooter to have a bigger battery and thereby an extended drive range of 153km. From the earlier four hours, the new model can be charged from 0% to 80% in three hours.  

The electric two-wheeler segment grew by a whopping 33% in CY24 to 1.14 million units. The surge in the electric category comes on the back of Bajaj Auto losing ground in the traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) two-wheeler space. Bajaj Auto’s retail market share in the domestic two-wheeler category hit a 30-month low in April after rivals Honda and TVS ramped up their presence riding on new launches.    As per the Vahan vehicle registration data supplied by FADA, Bajaj ended April with a share of 10.85% which was the lowest level since October 2022 when it clocked 9.98% share. Bajaj Auto operates in about a third of India’two-wheeler market featuring petrol-powered scooters. But Bajaj is riding the electric wave. The management disclosed in January that 22% of the company’s domestic turnover is now generated by electric vehicles. In both electric two and three-wheelers, the company claimed to have achieved EBITDA breakeven. The company will announce its March quarter financial performance on May 29.

“Bajaj Auto is strengthening its position in the electric vehicle segment with the recent launch of its E-scooter models (3501, 3502) built on a new platform. We build in an estimated 30% compound annual growth rate in EVs over FY25,”analysts at Nuvama wrote recently.

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This article was first uploaded on May eighteen, twenty twenty-five, at fifty-eight minutes past eleven in the night.



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