Government may soon come out with a procurement tender for 3,500 EVs

3 Oct 2022 , 10:59 AM

Convergence Energy Services (CESL), a state-owned business that manages the purchase of EVs for federal and state government agencies, warned that when more and more electric vehicles are introduced by automakers at the entry level of the market, the scope of the program may grow. Government fleets at the federal and state levels total roughly 600,000 gasoline and diesel vehicles.

Mahua Acharya, the chief executive of CESL, told ET that the business has received a “qualified” request for 3,500 electric vehicles and that a tender may be issued soon.

The new CESL tender comes as the market for EV adoption in passenger vehicles is picking up speed. For the first time, the market for passenger EVs is expected to surpass 50,000 units.

Although there is a certified demand of 3,500 vehicles, she emphasized that this figure might very easily increase to 10,000 vehicles within two years.

Tata Motors launched the Tiago last week at a ground-breaking price of Rs8.49-11.79 lakh (ex-showroom) for the first 10,000 customers, breaking the sub-Rs10 lakh barrier in EV pricing. Currently, the business also sells electric versions of the sedan Tigor and the SUV Nexon. In the upcoming year, Tata Motors plans to release the Punch EV and Altroz EV, giving customers more options in the sub-Rs15 lakh market.

Acharya was of the opinion that the existing Nexon EV performs admirably and that Rs15—17 lakhs would be the appropriate affordability replacement level for the Indian government.

In total, around 20 EVs are anticipated to be on Indian roads within the next three years.

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